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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 116 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. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  2. The ________________ market has crashed.
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  5. What do you think of the new ________________?
  6. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  15. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  19. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  20. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  21. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  22. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  23. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  24. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a tool
  2. stock — shares
  3. spring — the season
  4. chip — to eat
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. file — a document
  7. field — for sport
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. tear — from crying
  10. field — farmland
  11. spring — a coil
  12. rest — what's left
  13. tear — to rip
  14. chip — for betting
  15. cabinet — a cupboard
  16. field — a subject
  17. spring — of water
  18. stock — a soup base
  19. chip — in a computer
  20. rest — what's left
  21. stock — goods
  22. tear — from crying
  23. rest — a break
  24. file — a line of people

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