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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. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  2. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  3. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  4. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  5. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  6. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  7. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  8. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  9. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. There's no middle ________________.
  12. Don't do anything ________________.
  13. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  14. He is an ace ________________.
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  17. You don't need to ________________ round.
  18. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  19. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  20. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  21. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  22. We're almost out of ________________.
  23. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  24. Fill up this ________________ with water.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a tool
  2. rash — a series
  3. present — the time now
  4. pop — music
  5. rash — on the skin
  6. ground — the earth
  7. chest — of your body
  8. present — there
  9. fork — a garden tool
  10. file — a document
  11. ground — a position
  12. rash — hasty
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. pitcher — in baseball
  15. file — a line of people
  16. fork — to eat with
  17. pop — to visit
  18. fork — in a road
  19. chest — of your body
  20. present — a gift
  21. chest — a box
  22. pop — soda
  23. ground — crushed
  24. pitcher — a jug

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