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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. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  2. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  3. I'll be taking the ________________.
  4. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  5. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  6. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  7. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  8. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. Don't do anything ________________.
  14. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  15. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  16. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  17. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  19. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  20. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  21. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  22. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  23. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  24. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — in an idiom
  2. straw — a straw man
  3. tube — the underground
  4. tear — from crying
  5. tube — a container
  6. wave — a sudden rise
  7. rash — a series
  8. tube — in a tire
  9. bat — the animal
  10. tear — from crying
  11. straw — to clutch at straws
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. rash — hasty
  14. file — a line of people
  15. rash — on the skin
  16. wave — of the sea
  17. wave — with your hand
  18. tear — to rip
  19. file — a document
  20. ruler — a monarch
  21. ruler — for measuring
  22. straw — dry grass
  23. ruler — for measuring
  24. file — a tool

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