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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 120 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. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  3. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. That must've been a ________________.
  6. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  7. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  8. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  13. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  14. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  15. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  16. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  17. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  18. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  19. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  20. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  21. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  22. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  23. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  24. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. bowl — a football final
  3. object — a thing
  4. chest — of your body
  5. rush — a thrill
  6. bowl — to roll
  7. chest — of your body
  8. file — a document
  9. tear — to rip
  10. object — to protest
  11. tear — from crying
  12. rush — hurry
  13. rush — to hurry
  14. scale — for weighing
  15. object — an aim
  16. file — a tool
  17. scale — size or range
  18. bank — for money
  19. bank — for money
  20. scale — in music
  21. file — a line of people
  22. chest — a box
  23. bank — of a river
  24. bowl — a dish

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