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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 124 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. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  3. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  4. The ________________ went through the wall.
  5. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  6. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  7. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  8. The King held a masked ________________.
  9. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  12. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  13. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  14. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  17. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  18. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  19. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  20. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  21. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  22. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  23. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a document
  2. kick — a thrill
  3. bark — to shout
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. file — a tool
  6. ball — a round shape
  7. craft — a skill
  8. ball — a dance
  9. current — happening now
  10. cold — not warm
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. craft — a handicraft
  13. ball — a great time
  14. bark — of a tree
  15. cold — an illness
  16. kick — with a leg
  17. nail — on a finger
  18. file — a line of people
  19. current — electric
  20. current — of water
  21. kick — in football
  22. bark — a dog's sound
  23. craft — boats
  24. cold — the Cold War

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