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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 information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  2. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  3. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  4. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  5. He was locked up in a ________________.
  6. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  7. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  8. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  11. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  16. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  17. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  18. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  19. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  20. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  23. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a document
  2. can — to be able to
  3. file — a line of people
  4. straw — a straw man
  5. cell — in a prison
  6. fall — the season
  7. bear — the animal
  8. fall — to drop
  9. file — a tool
  10. chip — for betting
  11. chip — in a computer
  12. field — for sport
  13. can — a tin
  14. cell — in biology
  15. cell — a phone
  16. fall — to drop
  17. can — a tin
  18. straw — to clutch at straws
  19. bear — the animal
  20. straw — dry grass
  21. field — a subject
  22. chip — to eat
  23. bear — to put up with
  24. field — farmland

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