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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. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  3. How do you ________________ your surname?
  4. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  5. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  6. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  7. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  8. The ________________ took off on time.
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  12. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  13. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  16. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  17. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  18. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  19. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  20. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  21. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  22. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  23. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  24. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a document
  2. spell — a short time
  3. spell — letters
  4. rock — to move gently
  5. plane — a tool
  6. pit — a hole
  7. pit — a fruit stone
  8. plane — an aircraft
  9. file — a tool
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. cue — a hint
  12. pit — in a race
  13. file — a line of people
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. rock — a stone
  16. cue — for pool
  17. rock — music
  18. spell — magic
  19. plane — in geometry
  20. wax — for sculpting
  21. wax — in the ear
  22. wax — to grow
  23. cue — a signal
  24. straw — to clutch at straws

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