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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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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. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  3. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  4. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  5. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  8. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  15. That must've been a ________________.
  16. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  17. The ________________ market has crashed.
  18. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  22. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. You shouldn't ________________ things.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a line of people
  2. file — a tool
  3. dip — a sauce
  4. straw — a straw man
  5. stock — goods
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. rush — hurry
  8. dip — to dunk
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. fork — to eat with
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. fork — in a road
  13. tear — to rip
  14. dip — to sink
  15. rush — a thrill
  16. file — a document
  17. stock — shares
  18. straw — to clutch at straws
  19. tear — from crying
  20. tear — from crying
  21. stock — a soup base
  22. fork — a garden tool
  23. bat — the animal
  24. rush — to hurry

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