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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. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  2. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  6. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  7. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  8. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  9. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  10. How do you ________________ your surname?
  11. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  12. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  13. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  14. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  19. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  20. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  21. This piece is in a major ________________.
  22. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  23. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  24. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.

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

Answer key

  1. key — for a lock
  2. snap — to speak sharply
  3. tear — to rip
  4. file — a tool
  5. fork — to eat with
  6. kick — a thrill
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. lie — to recline
  9. spell — a short time
  10. spell — letters
  11. fork — in a road
  12. kick — with a leg
  13. snap — to click
  14. file — a line of people
  15. tear — from crying
  16. kick — in football
  17. tear — from crying
  18. lie — an untruth
  19. snap — to snap out of it
  20. fork — a garden tool
  21. key — in music
  22. key — the most important part
  23. spell — magic
  24. file — a document

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