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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. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  2. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  3. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  4. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  7. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  8. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  11. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  12. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  13. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  14. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  15. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  16. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  17. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  19. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  20. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  21. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  22. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  23. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  24. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a document
  2. file — a line of people
  3. rest — a break
  4. wave — of the sea
  5. hand — help
  6. band — a ring
  7. pass — a permit
  8. fall — to drop
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. wave — with your hand
  11. wave — a sudden rise
  12. prune — to trim
  13. pass — to succeed
  14. fall — the season
  15. rest — what's left
  16. fall — to drop
  17. prune — the fruit
  18. file — a tool
  19. pass — to spend time
  20. rest — what's left
  21. hand — in cards
  22. prune — to trim
  23. band — a music group
  24. hand — part of the body

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