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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. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  2. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. I'll be taking the ________________.
  5. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  6. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  7. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  8. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  9. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  10. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  11. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  12. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  13. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  14. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  15. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  16. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  21. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  22. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  23. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  24. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a tool
  2. wave — a sudden rise
  3. clip — to cut
  4. tube — the underground
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. tube — a container
  7. hide — animal skin
  8. wave — of the sea
  9. file — a line of people
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. drill — the tool
  12. file — a document
  13. cap — a lid
  14. tube — in a tire
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. cap — of ice
  17. clip — for paper
  18. patient — calm and waiting
  19. clip — a video
  20. wave — with your hand
  21. cap — a hat
  22. drill — a practice
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. drill — army training

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