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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. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  2. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  3. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  4. The ________________ market has crashed.
  5. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  6. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  7. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  8. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  9. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  10. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  15. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  16. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  17. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  18. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  21. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  22. The ________________ took off on time.
  23. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  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. file — a tool
  3. wave — of the sea
  4. stock — shares
  5. stem — of a plant
  6. craft — a skill
  7. craft — boats
  8. stem — to come from
  9. stock — goods
  10. stock — a soup base
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. wave — with your hand
  13. cold — an illness
  14. fall — to drop
  15. craft — a handicraft
  16. fall — the season
  17. fall — to drop
  18. plane — in geometry
  19. cold — not warm
  20. stem — a stem cell
  21. wave — a sudden rise
  22. plane — an aircraft
  23. plane — 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