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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 120 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. How do you ________________ your surname?
  2. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  3. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  6. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  7. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  8. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  9. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  10. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  11. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  12. Don't do anything ________________.
  13. The ________________ took off on time.
  14. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  15. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  16. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  17. That was a fun ________________.
  18. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  19. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  22. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  23. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  24. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — letters
  2. rash — on the skin
  3. file — a tool
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. plane — in geometry
  6. spell — magic
  7. file — a line of people
  8. pitch — a sports field
  9. spell — a short time
  10. game — wild animals
  11. pass — to spend time
  12. rash — hasty
  13. plane — an aircraft
  14. chest — of your body
  15. pitch — a sales talk
  16. pass — to succeed
  17. game — a match
  18. chest — a box
  19. pitch — completely
  20. file — a document
  21. pass — a permit
  22. rash — a series
  23. plane — a tool
  24. chest — of your body

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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