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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. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  6. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  7. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  8. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  9. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  10. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  11. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  12. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  16. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  17. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  18. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  19. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  20. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  21. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  22. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  23. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  24. We had a fire ________________ at school today.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — a permit
  2. tear — to rip
  3. row — a line
  4. file — a tool
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. leaves — to go away
  7. track — a path
  8. fan — to cool the air
  9. pass — to succeed
  10. pass — to spend time
  11. leaves — lets stay
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. file — a document
  14. tear — from crying
  15. row — a quarrel
  16. row — to paddle
  17. tear — from crying
  18. file — a line of people
  19. track — a song
  20. drill — army training
  21. track — to keep track
  22. leaves — of a tree
  23. drill — the tool
  24. drill — a practice

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