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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 116 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. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  2. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  3. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  4. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  5. The ________________ went through the wall.
  6. Have you met the new head ________________?
  7. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  8. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  9. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  14. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  15. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  16. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  17. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  18. That must've been a ________________.
  19. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  20. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  21. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  22. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  23. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  24. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — to rip
  2. file — a line of people
  3. kick — a thrill
  4. fork — a garden tool
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. pound — for dogs
  9. fork — to eat with
  10. file — a document
  11. tear — from crying
  12. tear — from crying
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. rush — to hurry
  15. fork — in a road
  16. kick — in football
  17. pound — a weight
  18. rush — a thrill
  19. file — a tool
  20. coach — pulled by horses
  21. kick — with a leg
  22. rush — hurry
  23. pound — to hit hard
  24. nail — on a finger

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