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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  2. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  3. Don't do anything ________________.
  4. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  5. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  6. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  7. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  8. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  9. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  10. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  11. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  12. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  13. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  14. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  15. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  16. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  17. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  18. 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. file — a line of people
  2. face — to point toward
  3. rash — hasty
  4. rash — on the skin
  5. net — for catching
  6. net — in sport
  7. face — part of the head
  8. track — a song
  9. rule — a law
  10. rule — to rule out
  11. rash — a series
  12. rule — government
  13. net — after costs
  14. track — a path
  15. track — to keep track
  16. file — a document
  17. face — to confront
  18. 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