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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. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  2. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  3. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  4. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  8. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  9. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  12. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  13. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  14. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  15. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  16. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  17. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  18. The ________________ took off on time.
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. Have you found your soul ________________?
  21. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  22. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  23. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  24. The spa offers ________________ extensions.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — the season
  2. plane — in geometry
  3. lash — a whip stroke
  4. bank — for money
  5. tear — from crying
  6. tear — from crying
  7. lash — to lash out
  8. file — a tool
  9. game — a kind of play
  10. file — a document
  11. mate — to breed
  12. game — wild animals
  13. fall — to drop
  14. fall — to drop
  15. mate — a friend
  16. bank — for money
  17. bank — of a river
  18. plane — an aircraft
  19. game — a match
  20. mate — a partner
  21. plane — a tool
  22. tear — to rip
  23. file — a line of people
  24. lash — an eyelash

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