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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. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  2. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  3. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  4. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  5. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  6. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  7. We're on a ________________ here.
  8. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  9. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  15. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  16. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  17. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  18. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  19. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  20. What do you think of the new ________________?
  21. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  22. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  23. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  24. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. wound — past of 'wind'
  3. rest — what's left
  4. file — a line of people
  5. fine — all right
  6. lash — a whip stroke
  7. roll — on a roll
  8. rest — what's left
  9. lash — an eyelash
  10. wound — an injury
  11. roll — a cake
  12. wound — an injury
  13. file — a document
  14. file — a tool
  15. chest — of your body
  16. roll — a list
  17. lash — to lash out
  18. chest — a box
  19. fine — high quality
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. fine — a penalty
  22. rest — a break
  23. chest — of your body
  24. cabinet — a cupboard

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