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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. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  2. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  3. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  4. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  9. He works in a ________________ mill.
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. He was locked up in a ________________.
  12. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  13. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  14. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  15. She's very handy with a ________________.
  16. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  17. When will it ________________ you to start?
  18. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  19. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  20. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  21. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  22. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  24. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. suit — clothes
  3. file — a document
  4. suit — in cards
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. tear — from crying
  7. hand — help
  8. file — a tool
  9. saw — the tool
  10. hand — in cards
  11. cell — in a prison
  12. fine — high quality
  13. file — a line of people
  14. tear — to rip
  15. saw — the tool
  16. cell — a phone
  17. suit — to fit
  18. saw — past of 'see'
  19. band — a rubber band
  20. fine — all right
  21. band — a ring
  22. band — a music group
  23. cell — in biology
  24. fine — a penalty

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