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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. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  2. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  3. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  4. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  5. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  6. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  7. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  8. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  9. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  10. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  11. Have you met the new head ________________?
  12. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  13. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  14. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  15. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  16. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  17. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  18. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  19. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  20. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  21. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  22. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  23. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  24. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a tool
  2. file — a document
  3. coach — pulled by horses
  4. mouse — the animal
  5. scale — size or range
  6. present — there
  7. prune — to trim
  8. scale — in music
  9. scale — for weighing
  10. mouse — the animal
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. file — a line of people
  13. prune — the fruit
  14. present — a gift
  15. fork — to eat with
  16. mouse — for a computer
  17. present — the time now
  18. prune — to trim
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. fork — a garden tool
  21. fork — in a road
  22. bark — to shout
  23. bark — a dog's sound
  24. bark — of a tree

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