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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. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  2. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  3. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  10. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  11. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  12. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  13. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  20. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  23. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  24. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. ruler — a monarch
  2. straw — a straw man
  3. straw — dry grass
  4. bat — the animal
  5. race — the arms race
  6. file — a tool
  7. race — humankind
  8. tear — from crying
  9. file — a document
  10. can — a tin
  11. tear — from crying
  12. straw — to clutch at straws
  13. can — to be able to
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. fall — to drop
  16. file — a line of people
  17. can — a tin
  18. race — a contest
  19. ruler — for measuring
  20. ruler — for measuring
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. fall — the season
  23. fall — to drop
  24. tear — to rip

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