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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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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: rock · scale · kick · staff · file · bat · rash · dip

  1. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  2. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  3. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  4. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  5. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  6. Don't do anything ________________.
  7. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  8. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  12. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  13. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  14. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  15. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  16. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  19. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  20. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  21. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  22. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  23. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  24. We were using a ________________ as a seat.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — a stick
  2. dip — to dunk
  3. rash — on the skin
  4. rock — music
  5. rock — to move gently
  6. rash — hasty
  7. file — a document
  8. dip — a sauce
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. dip — to sink
  12. file — a line of people
  13. staff — employees
  14. rash — a series
  15. scale — for weighing
  16. file — a tool
  17. bat — the animal
  18. staff — employees
  19. kick — with a leg
  20. kick — in football
  21. kick — a thrill
  22. scale — in music
  23. scale — size or range
  24. rock — a stone

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