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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. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  2. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  4. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. This piece is in a major ________________.
  10. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  11. Have you met the new head ________________?
  12. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  13. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  14. The tickets are free of ________________.
  15. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. False peace will not ________________.
  19. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  20. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  21. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  22. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  23. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  24. Do you need a ________________ with that?

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

Answer key

  1. file — a tool
  2. last — final
  3. file — a line of people
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. last — finally
  7. field — farmland
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. key — in music
  10. key — for a lock
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. file — a document
  13. row — a line
  14. charge — a price
  15. charge — electricity
  16. field — for sport
  17. field — a subject
  18. last — to go on
  19. key — the most important part
  20. charge — in control
  21. coach — pulled by horses
  22. hand — in cards
  23. row — to paddle
  24. hand — help

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