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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. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  2. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  3. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  4. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  5. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  6. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  9. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  10. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  11. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  12. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  13. That was ________________ to happen.
  14. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  15. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  16. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  17. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  20. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  21. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  22. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. Many English words ________________ from Latin.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. bowl — a football final
  3. rest — what's left
  4. drill — army training
  5. file — a line of people
  6. rest — a break
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. bound — tied together
  9. fan — to cool the air
  10. bound — obliged
  11. stem — of a plant
  12. stem — a stem cell
  13. bound — certain
  14. bowl — a dish
  15. straw — a straw man
  16. drill — the tool
  17. bowl — to roll
  18. file — a document
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. file — a tool
  21. drill — a practice
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. stem — to come from

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