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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: pit · cap · wave · scale · file · drill · bark · game

  1. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  2. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  3. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  4. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  5. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  6. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  7. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  8. That was a fun ________________.
  9. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  10. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  11. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  12. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  13. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  14. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  15. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  16. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  17. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  18. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  19. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  20. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  21. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  22. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  23. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  24. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a tool
  2. wave — of the sea
  3. file — a line of people
  4. wave — with your hand
  5. drill — the tool
  6. scale — in music
  7. cap — a hat
  8. game — a match
  9. cap — of ice
  10. scale — for weighing
  11. bark — to shout
  12. drill — a practice
  13. bark — a dog's sound
  14. pit — in a race
  15. cap — a lid
  16. bark — of a tree
  17. game — a kind of play
  18. drill — army training
  19. pit — a fruit stone
  20. game — wild animals
  21. pit — a hole
  22. wave — a sudden rise
  23. scale — size or range
  24. file — a document

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