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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. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  2. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  3. That must've been a ________________.
  4. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  5. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  6. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  7. How do you ________________ your surname?
  8. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  9. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  10. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  11. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  12. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  13. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  14. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  15. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  16. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  17. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  18. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  19. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  20. The ________________ took off on time.
  21. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  22. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  23. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  24. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. file — a document
  3. rush — a thrill
  4. plane — a tool
  5. rule — a law
  6. rush — to hurry
  7. spell — letters
  8. spell — a short time
  9. lash — an eyelash
  10. fall — the season
  11. plane — in geometry
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. lash — a whip stroke
  14. file — a tool
  15. fall — to drop
  16. fall — to drop
  17. file — a line of people
  18. rule — to rule out
  19. rule — government
  20. plane — an aircraft
  21. rush — hurry
  22. lash — to lash out
  23. hide — animal skin
  24. spell — magic

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