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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. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  2. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  3. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  4. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  5. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  6. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  7. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  8. My father caught me by the ________________.
  9. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  17. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  18. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  21. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  22. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  23. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — an agreement
  2. arm — a part of something
  3. file — a tool
  4. tear — from crying
  5. lean — thin
  6. deal — to handle
  7. fine — a penalty
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. file — a document
  10. march — the month
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. march — music
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. lean — to rest against
  15. tear — to rip
  16. fine — all right
  17. fine — high quality
  18. file — a line of people
  19. tear — from crying
  20. deal — a big deal
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. bat — the animal
  23. lean — to bend
  24. march — the month

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