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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 116 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. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  2. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  3. It's one o'clock ________________.
  4. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  5. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  6. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  7. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  8. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  9. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  10. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  11. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  12. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  13. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  14. There's no middle ________________.
  15. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  16. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  17. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  20. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  21. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  22. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. Add some ________________ pepper to it.

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. file — a tool
  3. sharp — exactly
  4. file — a document
  5. racket — a loud noise
  6. bear — the animal
  7. leaves — of a tree
  8. fine — all right
  9. sharp — clever
  10. fine — high quality
  11. bear — the animal
  12. file — a line of people
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. ground — a position
  15. sharp — with an edge
  16. leaves — lets stay
  17. bear — to put up with
  18. ground — the earth
  19. fine — a penalty
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. land — a country
  22. leaves — to go away
  23. land — to come down
  24. ground — crushed

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