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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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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: suit · last · game · object · scale · mine · file · arm

  1. That was a fun ________________.
  2. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  3. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  4. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  5. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. My father caught me by the ________________.
  8. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  9. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. When will it ________________ you to start?
  15. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  16. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  17. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  18. False peace will not ________________.
  19. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  20. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  21. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  22. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  23. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. mine — an explosive
  3. object — to protest
  4. scale — in music
  5. object — an aim
  6. mine — for digging
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. suit — clothes
  9. game — a kind of play
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. game — wild animals
  12. arm — a part of something
  13. last — final
  14. suit — to fit
  15. scale — size or range
  16. scale — for weighing
  17. arm — part of the body
  18. last — to go on
  19. file — a line of people
  20. suit — in cards
  21. object — a thing
  22. file — a document
  23. file — a tool
  24. last — finally

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