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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. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  2. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  6. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  13. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  14. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  15. He is an ace ________________.
  16. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  17. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  18. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  19. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  20. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  21. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  22. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  23. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  24. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a line of people
  2. bear — the animal
  3. tear — from crying
  4. tear — to rip
  5. drill — army training
  6. bear — the animal
  7. hand — help
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. drill — a practice
  10. file — a document
  11. hand — in cards
  12. scale — for weighing
  13. fall — to drop
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. pitcher — in baseball
  16. scale — in music
  17. file — a tool
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. scale — size or range
  20. drill — the tool
  21. fall — the season
  22. tear — from crying
  23. bear — to put up with
  24. fall — to drop

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