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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. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  2. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  3. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  6. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  7. We're almost out of ________________.
  8. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  9. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  10. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  11. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  12. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  13. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  14. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  15. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  16. You don't need to ________________ round.
  17. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  18. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  19. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  20. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  21. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  22. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  23. She's very handy with a ________________.
  24. He works in a ________________ mill.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — before a funeral
  2. file — a document
  3. file — a tool
  4. chest — of your body
  5. object — an aim
  6. wake — a trail
  7. pop — soda
  8. chest — of your body
  9. fall — to drop
  10. fall — the season
  11. object — to protest
  12. file — a line of people
  13. pop — music
  14. prune — to trim
  15. prune — the fruit
  16. pop — to visit
  17. saw — past of 'see'
  18. chest — a box
  19. object — a thing
  20. fall — to drop
  21. wake — to stop sleeping
  22. prune — to trim
  23. saw — the tool
  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