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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. The light ________________ burned out.
  3. I've got to change the light ________________.
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  6. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  7. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  10. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  11. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  12. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  13. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  14. Have you met the new head ________________?
  15. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  16. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  17. It's one o'clock ________________.
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  21. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  22. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  23. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  24. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a document
  2. bulb — for light
  3. bulb — for light
  4. clip — to cut
  5. shower — to wash
  6. file — a line of people
  7. sharp — with an edge
  8. clip — for paper
  9. calf — of the leg
  10. file — a tool
  11. band — a rubber band
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. coach — pulled by horses
  16. band — a music group
  17. sharp — exactly
  18. shower — rain
  19. clip — a video
  20. sharp — clever
  21. bulb — of a plant
  22. band — a ring
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. shower — a meteor shower

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