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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. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  5. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  6. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  7. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  8. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  9. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  10. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  15. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  19. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  23. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  24. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a tool
  2. last — to go on
  3. bat — the animal
  4. file — a line of people
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. fork — in a road
  7. bat — in an idiom
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. rest — what's left
  10. fork — a garden tool
  11. last — finally
  12. rest — what's left
  13. last — final
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. tear — from crying
  17. file — a document
  18. tear — to rip
  19. rest — a break
  20. tear — from crying
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. racket — a loud noise
  23. patient — calm and waiting
  24. fork — to eat with

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