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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 hit the ball with his ________________.
  2. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  3. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  4. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  5. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  6. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  7. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  8. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  9. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  10. It's one o'clock ________________.
  11. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  12. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  13. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  14. False peace will not ________________.
  15. That was ________________ to happen.
  16. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  17. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  18. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  19. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  20. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  21. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  22. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  23. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  24. He's quite ________________, isn't he?

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. file — a tool
  3. last — finally
  4. file — a line of people
  5. bowl — a football final
  6. scale — for weighing
  7. deal — a big deal
  8. bowl — to roll
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. sharp — exactly
  11. bowl — a dish
  12. file — a document
  13. deal — an agreement
  14. last — to go on
  15. bound — certain
  16. sharp — with an edge
  17. scale — size or range
  18. last — final
  19. bound — tied together
  20. scale — in music
  21. racket — a loud noise
  22. bound — obliged
  23. deal — to handle
  24. sharp — clever

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