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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. Don't do anything ________________.
  2. That must've been a ________________.
  3. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  4. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  5. I'll be taking the ________________.
  6. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  7. Did you ________________ the meat?
  8. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  9. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  12. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  16. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  17. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  18. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  19. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  23. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  24. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — hasty
  2. rush — a thrill
  3. tube — in a tire
  4. rash — a series
  5. tube — the underground
  6. file — a document
  7. season — to add flavour
  8. fall — to drop
  9. file — a line of people
  10. row — a line
  11. season — in sport
  12. row — a quarrel
  13. last — final
  14. last — finally
  15. rash — on the skin
  16. season — of the year
  17. tube — a container
  18. fall — to drop
  19. file — a tool
  20. row — to paddle
  21. last — to go on
  22. rush — to hurry
  23. rush — hurry
  24. fall — the season

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