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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. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  2. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. The King held a masked ________________.
  5. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  6. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  7. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  8. That was a fun ________________.
  9. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  14. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  15. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  16. The ________________ took off on time.
  17. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  18. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  19. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  20. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  21. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  22. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  23. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  24. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.

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

Answer key

  1. can — a tin
  2. object — to protest
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. ball — a dance
  5. file — a tool
  6. bank — for money
  7. file — a line of people
  8. game — a match
  9. ball — a great time
  10. file — a document
  11. can — to be able to
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. bank — for money
  14. can — a tin
  15. plane — in geometry
  16. plane — an aircraft
  17. ball — a round shape
  18. bank — of a river
  19. straw — to clutch at straws
  20. plane — a tool
  21. straw — a straw man
  22. game — wild animals
  23. object — an aim
  24. object — a thing

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