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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. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  2. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  3. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  4. He works in a ________________ mill.
  5. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  6. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  9. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  10. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  11. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  12. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  13. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  14. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  15. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  16. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  17. She's very handy with a ________________.
  18. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  19. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  22. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  23. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  24. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — a thrill
  2. file — a line of people
  3. row — a quarrel
  4. saw — the tool
  5. staff — a stick
  6. kick — with a leg
  7. row — a line
  8. current — happening now
  9. kick — in football
  10. face — part of the head
  11. file — a tool
  12. current — of water
  13. staff — employees
  14. face — to confront
  15. face — to point toward
  16. current — electric
  17. saw — the tool
  18. mouse — the animal
  19. file — a document
  20. row — to paddle
  21. saw — past of 'see'
  22. mouse — for a computer
  23. staff — employees
  24. mouse — the animal

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