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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. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  2. There's no middle ________________.
  3. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  4. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  5. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  6. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  7. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  8. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  9. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  10. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  11. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  12. He works in a ________________ mill.
  13. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  14. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  15. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  16. How do you ________________ your surname?
  17. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  18. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  21. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  22. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  23. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  24. She's very handy with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a document
  2. ground — a position
  3. ground — crushed
  4. wake — before a funeral
  5. wake — to stop sleeping
  6. rule — a law
  7. wake — a trail
  8. tear — from crying
  9. file — a line of people
  10. file — a tool
  11. spell — a short time
  12. saw — the tool
  13. spell — magic
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. perch — the fish
  16. spell — letters
  17. ground — the earth
  18. rule — to rule out
  19. tear — from crying
  20. tear — to rip
  21. rule — government
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. saw — past of 'see'
  24. saw — the 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