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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. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  2. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  3. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  4. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  7. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  8. The King held a masked ________________.
  9. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  10. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  11. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  12. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  13. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  14. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  15. That was ________________ to happen.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  20. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  21. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  22. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  23. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  24. It's one o'clock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a tool
  2. ball — a great time
  3. file — a line of people
  4. file — a document
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. patient — calm and waiting
  7. ball — a round shape
  8. ball — a dance
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. wake — to stop sleeping
  11. wake — before a funeral
  12. bound — tied together
  13. club — a group
  14. bound — obliged
  15. bound — certain
  16. capital — money
  17. sharp — with an edge
  18. capital — a city
  19. club — for golf
  20. sharp — clever
  21. club — for dancing
  22. wake — a trail
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. sharp — exactly

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