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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 120 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  2. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  3. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  4. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  5. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  6. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  7. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  8. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  9. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  10. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  11. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  12. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  13. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  14. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  15. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  19. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  20. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  21. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  22. My father caught me by the ________________.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. She's sitting on a gold ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. file — a document
  2. cue — for pool
  3. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  4. arm — a part of something
  5. craft — a skill
  6. lie — to recline
  7. file — a line of people
  8. kid — to tease
  9. cue — a signal
  10. file — a tool
  11. craft — boats
  12. cue — a hint
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. chair — a professorship
  15. chair — to sit on
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. chair — a leader
  18. mine — an explosive
  19. craft — a handicraft
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. arm — part of the body
  23. kid — child
  24. mine — for digging

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com