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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 ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  5. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  10. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  11. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  12. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  13. It's one o'clock ________________.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  16. The light ________________ burned out.
  17. I've got to change the light ________________.
  18. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  19. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  20. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  21. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  22. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  24. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. file — a line of people
  3. tear — to rip
  4. sharp — with an edge
  5. wind — to turn a key
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. safe — out of danger
  8. wind — moving air
  9. scale — size or range
  10. safe — a strongbox
  11. sharp — clever
  12. scale — for weighing
  13. sharp — exactly
  14. wind — moving air
  15. bat — in an idiom
  16. bulb — for light
  17. bulb — for light
  18. bulb — of a plant
  19. safe — out of danger
  20. scale — in music
  21. tear — from crying
  22. file — a tool
  23. tear — from crying
  24. file — a document

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