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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. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  2. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  3. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  6. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  7. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  8. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  9. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  10. Don't do anything ________________.
  11. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  12. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  15. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  16. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  17. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  18. He works in a ________________ mill.
  19. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  20. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  21. She's very handy with a ________________.
  22. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. I seem to be developing a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — a break
  2. rest — what's left
  3. bear — the animal
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. bat — the animal
  6. file — a line of people
  7. file — a tool
  8. rest — what's left
  9. object — to protest
  10. rash — hasty
  11. snap — to speak sharply
  12. snap — to click
  13. file — a document
  14. object — a thing
  15. object — an aim
  16. rash — a series
  17. bear — to put up with
  18. saw — the tool
  19. snap — to snap out of it
  20. bear — the animal
  21. saw — the tool
  22. saw — past of 'see'
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. rash — on the skin

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