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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. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  2. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  5. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  8. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  9. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  10. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  11. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  12. The ________________ went through the wall.
  13. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  14. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. He works in a ________________ mill.
  17. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  18. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  19. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  20. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  21. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  22. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  23. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  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 tool
  2. kick — with a leg
  3. cold — not warm
  4. file — a line of people
  5. staff — employees
  6. cold — an illness
  7. kick — a thrill
  8. staff — a stick
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. mouse — the animal
  11. file — a document
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. kick — in football
  14. saw — past of 'see'
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. saw — the tool
  17. mouse — the animal
  18. mouse — for a computer
  19. scale — in music
  20. staff — employees
  21. scale — size or range
  22. nail — on a finger
  23. scale — for weighing
  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