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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. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  4. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  5. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  6. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  7. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  8. I've got to change the light ________________.
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  15. The light ________________ burned out.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  18. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  19. We're on a ________________ here.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  22. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  23. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  24. Tom got himself in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a line of people
  2. degree — an amount
  3. file — a document
  4. club — for golf
  5. club — a group
  6. bulb — of a plant
  7. jam — in traffic
  8. bulb — for light
  9. last — to go on
  10. capital — money
  11. club — for dancing
  12. last — finally
  13. degree — from a university
  14. jam — to spread on bread
  15. bulb — for light
  16. degree — temperature
  17. file — a tool
  18. roll — a list
  19. roll — on a roll
  20. capital — a city
  21. roll — a cake
  22. capital — a big letter
  23. last — final
  24. jam — a tight spot

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