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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. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  2. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  5. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  6. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  7. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  8. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  9. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  10. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  15. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  16. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  17. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  19. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  20. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  21. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  22. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  23. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. jam — in traffic
  2. cue — a hint
  3. tear — to rip
  4. file — a document
  5. file — a line of people
  6. bore — gave birth
  7. track — to keep track
  8. track — a path
  9. track — a song
  10. mouse — the animal
  11. tear — from crying
  12. mouse — for a computer
  13. last — to go on
  14. mouse — the animal
  15. jam — a tight spot
  16. jam — to spread on bread
  17. bore — to tire
  18. file — a tool
  19. cue — for pool
  20. bore — to drill
  21. tear — from crying
  22. cue — a signal
  23. last — final
  24. last — finally

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