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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. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  2. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  3. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  4. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  5. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  12. Have you met the new head ________________?
  13. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  18. The ________________ took off on time.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  21. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  24. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a tool
  2. plane — a tool
  3. lie — an untruth
  4. bore — gave birth
  5. plane — in geometry
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. coach — pulled by horses
  8. chest — of your body
  9. file — a document
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. chest — of your body
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. lie — to recline
  14. clip — for paper
  15. bore — to tire
  16. clip — a video
  17. chest — a box
  18. plane — an aircraft
  19. bat — the animal
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. clip — to cut
  23. bore — to drill
  24. file — a line of people

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