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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. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  3. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  4. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  5. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  6. It's one o'clock ________________.
  7. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  8. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  11. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  12. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  13. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  14. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  15. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  16. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  17. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  18. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  19. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  20. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  21. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  22. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  23. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  24. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a tool
  2. toast — bread
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. file — a line of people
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. sharp — exactly
  7. leaves — to go away
  8. sharp — with an edge
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. sharp — clever
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. leaves — lets stay
  13. track — a path
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. track — to keep track
  16. straw — dry grass
  17. hide — animal skin
  18. straw — a straw man
  19. toast — a drink to someone
  20. toast — the most admired
  21. leaves — of a tree
  22. file — a document
  23. fan — to cool the air
  24. track — a song

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