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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. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  2. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  5. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  6. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  9. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  10. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  11. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  12. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  13. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  14. Have you settled on a ________________?
  15. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  16. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  19. What do you think of the new ________________?
  20. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  21. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  22. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  23. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  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. cabinet — ministers
  2. pound — to hit hard
  3. bat — the animal
  4. date — the fruit
  5. band — a rubber band
  6. cabinet — a cupboard
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. ruler — a monarch
  9. file — a document
  10. bear — the animal
  11. date — on the calendar
  12. bear — the animal
  13. ruler — for measuring
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. pound — for dogs
  16. file — a tool
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. bear — to put up with
  19. cabinet — ministers
  20. pound — a weight
  21. band — a music group
  22. band — a ring
  23. ruler — for measuring
  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