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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.

Make a worksheet

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: field · rash · capital · mouse · straw · face · date · file

  1. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  2. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  5. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  6. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. Don't do anything ________________.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  12. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  13. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  14. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  17. Have you settled on a ________________?
  18. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  19. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  22. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  23. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  24. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. file — a tool
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. field — farmland
  4. file — a document
  5. rash — a series
  6. mouse — for a computer
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. rash — hasty
  9. field — for sport
  10. field — a subject
  11. file — a line of people
  12. face — part of the head
  13. rash — on the skin
  14. face — to confront
  15. capital — a city
  16. mouse — the animal
  17. date — on the calendar
  18. capital — money
  19. face — to point toward
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. mouse — the animal
  22. straw — to clutch at straws
  23. date — the fruit
  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