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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: ruler · prune · content · rest · deal · bat · file · current

  1. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  2. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  3. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  10. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  13. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  14. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  15. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  18. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  19. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  20. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  21. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  22. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  23. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  24. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — an agreement
  2. ruler — a monarch
  3. prune — to trim
  4. file — a tool
  5. current — of water
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. current — electric
  8. content — happy
  9. rest — what's left
  10. prune — the fruit
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. bat — the animal
  13. deal — a big deal
  14. current — happening now
  15. rest — a break
  16. file — a line of people
  17. prune — to trim
  18. ruler — for measuring
  19. file — a document
  20. content — the amount
  21. rest — what's left
  22. ruler — for measuring
  23. content — videos and posts
  24. deal — to handle

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