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

Word bank: kid · rule · pound · object · snap · stock · file · scale

  1. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  2. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  3. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  4. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  5. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  6. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  7. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  8. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  9. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  10. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  11. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  12. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  15. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  16. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  17. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  19. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  20. The ________________ market has crashed.
  21. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  22. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  23. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  24. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to speak sharply
  2. object — an aim
  3. file — a line of people
  4. file — a document
  5. file — a tool
  6. rule — a law
  7. kid — to tease
  8. scale — size or range
  9. pound — to hit hard
  10. snap — to snap out of it
  11. rule — government
  12. pound — for dogs
  13. kid — child
  14. scale — for weighing
  15. scale — in music
  16. object — to protest
  17. stock — a soup base
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  19. snap — to click
  20. stock — shares
  21. object — a thing
  22. pound — a weight
  23. stock — goods
  24. rule — to rule out

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