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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.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: file · club · field · pit · saw · hand · cue · bore

  1. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  2. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  5. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  6. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  7. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  8. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  11. He works in a ________________ mill.
  12. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  15. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  18. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  19. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  22. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  23. She's very handy with a ________________.
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for golf
  2. pit — a fruit stone
  3. field — farmland
  4. field — for sport
  5. pit — in a race
  6. bore — to drill
  7. pit — a hole
  8. cue — a signal
  9. file — a tool
  10. bore — gave birth
  11. saw — the tool
  12. cue — a hint
  13. hand — in cards
  14. saw — past of 'see'
  15. club — for dancing
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. cue — for pool
  18. file — a line of people
  19. hand — help
  20. file — a document
  21. club — a group
  22. bore — to tire
  23. saw — the tool
  24. field — a subject

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