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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. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  3. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  4. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  5. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  6. When are we going to ________________?
  7. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  8. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  9. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  10. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  11. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  12. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  13. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  14. Have you met the new head ________________?
  15. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  16. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  21. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  22. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  23. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  24. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. file — a document
  3. present — a gift
  4. cue — a hint
  5. cue — for pool
  6. land — to come down
  7. object — to protest
  8. present — the time now
  9. staff — employees
  10. staff — a stick
  11. staff — employees
  12. file — a tool
  13. cue — a signal
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. present — there
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. land — ground
  18. object — a thing
  19. kid — child
  20. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  21. object — an aim
  22. coach — pulled by horses
  23. file — a line of people
  24. land — a country

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