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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. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  5. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  8. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  15. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  16. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  19. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  20. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  21. My mare is ________________ in color.
  22. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  23. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. present — a gift
  2. file — a document
  3. last — final
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. scale — in music
  6. capital — money
  7. net — for catching
  8. bay — to keep at bay
  9. last — to go on
  10. present — the time now
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. bay — a part of the sea
  13. capital — a city
  14. scale — size or range
  15. present — there
  16. net — after costs
  17. net — in sport
  18. scale — for weighing
  19. file — a tool
  20. hide — animal skin
  21. bay — a horse colour
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. file — a line of people
  24. last — finally

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