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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. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  2. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  3. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  4. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  7. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  8. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  9. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  10. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  15. Did you ________________ the meat?
  16. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  17. She's very handy with a ________________.
  18. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  19. We're on a ________________ here.
  20. He works in a ________________ mill.
  21. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  22. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  23. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  24. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a cake
  2. firm — a company
  3. file — a tool
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. wind — moving air
  6. firm — decided
  7. bass — low music
  8. season — of the year
  9. saw — past of 'see'
  10. bass — the instrument
  11. wind — moving air
  12. stick — to attach or keep to
  13. file — a document
  14. wind — to turn a key
  15. season — to add flavour
  16. season — in sport
  17. saw — the tool
  18. bass — the fish
  19. roll — on a roll
  20. saw — the tool
  21. firm — steady
  22. file — a line of people
  23. roll — a list
  24. stick — a piece of wood

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