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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. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  2. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  4. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  5. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  6. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  11. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  12. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  13. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  14. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  15. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  18. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  19. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  20. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  21. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  22. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  23. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  24. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a song
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. file — a tool
  4. file — a document
  5. pass — to succeed
  6. track — a path
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. pass — a permit
  9. cell — in biology
  10. rest — what's left
  11. present — there
  12. rest — what's left
  13. rest — a break
  14. pass — to spend time
  15. wind — moving air
  16. wind — moving air
  17. lean — to bend
  18. file — a line of people
  19. cell — a phone
  20. track — to keep track
  21. lean — thin
  22. present — a gift
  23. lean — to rest against
  24. present — the time now

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