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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 116 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. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  2. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  3. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  6. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  7. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  8. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  9. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  10. He is an ace ________________.
  11. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  12. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  15. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  18. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  19. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  20. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  21. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  22. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  23. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  24. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. staff — employees
  3. file — a document
  4. file — a tool
  5. staff — employees
  6. lean — to bend
  7. stick — to attach or keep to
  8. stick — a piece of wood
  9. fork — to eat with
  10. pitcher — in baseball
  11. staff — a stick
  12. fork — a garden tool
  13. tear — from crying
  14. deal — a big deal
  15. lean — thin
  16. tear — to rip
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. deal — to handle
  19. lean — to rest against
  20. deal — an agreement
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. file — a line of people
  23. stick — a piece of wood
  24. fork — in a road

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