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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: mine · foot · chip · bass · file · hide · rest · saw

  1. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  2. She's very handy with a ________________.
  3. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  4. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  7. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  8. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  9. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  10. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  11. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  14. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  15. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  16. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  17. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  18. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  19. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  20. He works in a ________________ mill.
  21. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  22. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  23. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  24. We have nothing to ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — a break
  2. saw — the tool
  3. hide — animal skin
  4. bass — the instrument
  5. mine — for digging
  6. chip — for betting
  7. file — a line of people
  8. bass — the fish
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. chip — to eat
  11. rest — what's left
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. saw — past of 'see'
  14. foot — a measure
  15. bass — low music
  16. rest — what's left
  17. mine — belonging to me
  18. foot — part of the body
  19. foot — the bottom
  20. saw — the tool
  21. chip — in a computer
  22. file — a document
  23. file — a tool
  24. hide — to keep secret

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