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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. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  2. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  3. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. I'll be taking the ________________.
  6. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  7. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  10. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  11. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  12. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  15. What do you think of the new ________________?
  16. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.
  19. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  22. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  23. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  24. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. lie — to recline
  3. cell — in biology
  4. cell — a phone
  5. tube — the underground
  6. kick — a thrill
  7. kick — in football
  8. tear — to rip
  9. file — a line of people
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. tube — a container
  12. tube — in a tire
  13. tear — from crying
  14. lie — an untruth
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. kick — with a leg
  17. file — a document
  18. cell — in a prison
  19. cabinet — ministers
  20. tear — from crying
  21. cabinet — a cupboard
  22. file — a tool
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. stick — to attach or keep to

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