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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 120 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'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  2. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  3. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  4. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  5. How do you ________________ your surname?
  6. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  9. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  12. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. When will it ________________ you to start?
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  19. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  20. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  23. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  24. My father caught me by the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. pound — a weight
  3. pound — to hit hard
  4. spell — magic
  5. spell — letters
  6. spell — a short time
  7. tear — to rip
  8. file — a line of people
  9. wave — with your hand
  10. tear — from crying
  11. file — a document
  12. arm — a part of something
  13. tear — from crying
  14. wave — a sudden rise
  15. bat — the animal
  16. suit — to fit
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. wave — of the sea
  19. file — a tool
  20. pound — for dogs
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. suit — in cards
  23. suit — clothes
  24. arm — part of the body

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