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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. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  2. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  3. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  4. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  5. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  6. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  7. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  8. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  11. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  14. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  15. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  16. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  19. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  24. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sports field
  2. file — a document
  3. band — a rubber band
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. fall — the season
  6. pitch — a sales talk
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. ruler — for measuring
  9. file — a tool
  10. pitch — completely
  11. fall — to drop
  12. clip — for paper
  13. ruler — a monarch
  14. fall — to drop
  15. band — a music group
  16. ruler — for measuring
  17. clip — a video
  18. band — a ring
  19. mine — for digging
  20. file — a line of people
  21. fan — to cool the air
  22. clip — to cut
  23. mine — an explosive
  24. mine — belonging to me

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