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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 120 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. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  2. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  6. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  7. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  8. That was a fun ________________.
  9. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  10. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  11. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  12. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  13. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  14. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  15. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  16. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  17. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  18. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  19. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  20. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  21. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  22. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  23. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  24. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a document
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. current — of water
  4. chair — a leader
  5. bear — to put up with
  6. pit — in a race
  7. chair — to sit on
  8. game — a match
  9. current — electric
  10. current — happening now
  11. bear — the animal
  12. branch — of a tree
  13. bear — the animal
  14. game — a kind of play
  15. chest — a box
  16. pit — a hole
  17. branch — a division
  18. branch — of a bank
  19. chest — of your body
  20. pit — a fruit stone
  21. chest — of your body
  22. game — wild animals
  23. file — a tool
  24. file — a line of people

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