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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. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  2. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  5. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  6. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  7. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  8. He was locked up in a ________________.
  9. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  13. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  17. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  19. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  22. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  24. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a tool
  2. file — a line of people
  3. last — final
  4. kick — in football
  5. rest — what's left
  6. rest — what's left
  7. kick — a thrill
  8. cell — in a prison
  9. wave — a sudden rise
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. tear — to rip
  12. wave — of the sea
  13. cell — in biology
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. last — finally
  16. straw — to clutch at straws
  17. kick — with a leg
  18. cell — a phone
  19. rest — a break
  20. last — to go on
  21. tear — from crying
  22. file — a document
  23. tear — from crying
  24. wave — with your hand

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