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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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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: fan · land · straw · file · rule · club · deal · perch

  1. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  2. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  4. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  5. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  6. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  7. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  10. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  11. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  12. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  13. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  14. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  15. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  16. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  17. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  18. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  19. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  20. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  21. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  22. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  23. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. file — a line of people
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. rule — a law
  4. land — a country
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. fan — to cool the air
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. club — for dancing
  10. deal — a big deal
  11. file — a tool
  12. deal — to handle
  13. rule — to rule out
  14. club — for golf
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. perch — the fish
  17. deal — an agreement
  18. straw — a straw man
  19. club — a group
  20. land — ground
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. rule — government
  23. file — a document
  24. land — to come down

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