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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. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  2. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  3. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  4. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  5. It's one o'clock ________________.
  6. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  9. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  10. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  11. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  12. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  15. Did you ________________ the button?
  16. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  17. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  18. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  22. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  23. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  24. Do you need a ________________ with that?

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

Answer key

  1. file — a line of people
  2. march — music
  3. row — a quarrel
  4. march — the month
  5. sharp — exactly
  6. press — newspapers
  7. hand — in cards
  8. lean — to rest against
  9. row — to paddle
  10. press — a publisher
  11. lean — thin
  12. file — a tool
  13. file — a document
  14. sharp — with an edge
  15. press — to push
  16. sharp — clever
  17. march — the month
  18. hand — part of the body
  19. tear — to rip
  20. tear — from crying
  21. row — a line
  22. tear — from crying
  23. lean — to bend
  24. hand — help

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