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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. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  2. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  3. The ________________ went through the wall.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  6. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  11. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  12. That was a fun ________________.
  13. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  14. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  15. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  18. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  19. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  20. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  24. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. file — a tool
  3. nail — for a hammer
  4. game — wild animals
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. object — a thing
  7. tear — from crying
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. jam — in traffic
  11. file — a line of people
  12. game — a match
  13. jam — to spread on bread
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. game — a kind of play
  16. bat — the animal
  17. jam — a tight spot
  18. patient — calm and waiting
  19. file — a document
  20. object — an aim
  21. tear — to rip
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. nail — on a finger
  24. object — to protest

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