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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. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  2. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  3. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  4. The ________________ went through the wall.
  5. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  8. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  9. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  10. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  11. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  12. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  13. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  14. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  15. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. We're on a ________________ here.
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  22. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  23. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  24. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — in music
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. file — a tool
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. roll — a cake
  6. spring — a coil
  7. squash — the sport
  8. squash — the vegetable
  9. file — a line of people
  10. net — after costs
  11. band — a ring
  12. net — for catching
  13. nail — on a finger
  14. scale — size or range
  15. band — a music group
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. net — in sport
  18. roll — on a roll
  19. spring — of water
  20. file — a document
  21. spring — the season
  22. roll — a list
  23. scale — for weighing
  24. squash — to crush

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