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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: bowl · file · track · drill · spell · face · straw · chip

  1. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  2. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  3. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  4. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  5. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  6. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  7. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  8. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  9. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  10. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  11. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  12. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  13. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  14. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  15. How do you ________________ your surname?
  16. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  19. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  20. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  21. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  22. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  23. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  24. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. face — part of the head
  2. drill — army training
  3. drill — the tool
  4. chip — in a computer
  5. drill — a practice
  6. chip — to eat
  7. face — to point toward
  8. chip — for betting
  9. bowl — to roll
  10. spell — a short time
  11. bowl — a dish
  12. file — a tool
  13. straw — dry grass
  14. track — a song
  15. spell — letters
  16. straw — to clutch at straws
  17. file — a document
  18. track — a path
  19. face — to confront
  20. spell — magic
  21. track — to keep track
  22. bowl — a football final
  23. straw — a straw man
  24. file — a line of people

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