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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: bat · file · press · rash · shower · jam · date · court

  1. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  2. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  3. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  4. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  5. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  6. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  7. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  8. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  11. Don't do anything ________________.
  12. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  13. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  16. Did you ________________ the button?
  17. The ball is in your ________________.
  18. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  19. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  20. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  23. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  24. Have you settled on a ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. file — a tool
  2. file — a document
  3. shower — to wash
  4. rash — on the skin
  5. jam — in traffic
  6. rash — a series
  7. press — newspapers
  8. shower — a meteor shower
  9. court — of a king
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. rash — hasty
  12. file — a line of people
  13. date — the fruit
  14. shower — rain
  15. bat — in an idiom
  16. press — to push
  17. court — for sport
  18. press — a publisher
  19. jam — to spread on bread
  20. court — of law
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. bat — the animal
  23. jam — a tight spot
  24. date — on the calendar

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