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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: mine · perch · bat · file · wax · pitch · rash · rush

  1. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  2. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  3. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  4. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  5. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  8. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  9. Don't do anything ________________.
  10. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  11. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  14. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  15. That must've been a ________________.
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  18. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  19. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  20. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  21. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  22. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  23. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  24. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — in an idiom
  2. file — a document
  3. pitch — completely
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. bat — the animal
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. rush — hurry
  8. wax — for sculpting
  9. rash — hasty
  10. rash — on the skin
  11. mine — for digging
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. mine — belonging to me
  14. rush — to hurry
  15. rush — a thrill
  16. file — a line of people
  17. perch — the fish
  18. pitch — a sports field
  19. wax — to grow
  20. rash — a series
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. wax — in the ear
  23. pitch — a sales talk
  24. file — a tool

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