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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. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  2. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  3. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  4. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  5. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  6. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  7. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. She's very handy with a ________________.
  11. When was this ________________ built?
  12. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  13. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  16. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  17. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. He works in a ________________ mill.
  21. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  22. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  23. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  24. Did you ________________ the button?

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. file — a tool
  3. cap — a lid
  4. wound — past of 'wind'
  5. file — a document
  6. shower — to wash
  7. saw — past of 'see'
  8. clip — for paper
  9. clip — a video
  10. saw — the tool
  11. temple — a place of worship
  12. shower — a meteor shower
  13. press — newspapers
  14. wound — an injury
  15. temple — a place of worship
  16. cap — of ice
  17. temple — side of the head
  18. shower — rain
  19. clip — to cut
  20. saw — the tool
  21. file — a line of people
  22. press — a publisher
  23. cap — a hat
  24. press — to push

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