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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. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  2. The King held a masked ________________.
  3. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  4. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  5. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  6. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  7. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  8. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  9. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  12. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  13. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  14. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  15. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  16. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  17. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  18. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  19. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  20. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  21. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  22. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  23. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  24. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — for a computer
  2. ball — a dance
  3. squash — to crush
  4. squash — the sport
  5. file — a document
  6. bore — to tire
  7. file — a line of people
  8. band — a rubber band
  9. band — a music group
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. band — a ring
  12. mouse — the animal
  13. file — a tool
  14. root — of a plant
  15. scale — in music
  16. bore — gave birth
  17. ball — a round shape
  18. scale — for weighing
  19. root — of a word
  20. ball — a great time
  21. scale — size or range
  22. bore — to drill
  23. root — the cause
  24. mouse — the animal

Multiple-meaning words list

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

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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