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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 train ________________ at six o'clock.
  3. He works in a ________________ mill.
  4. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  5. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  6. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  7. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  8. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  9. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  10. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  11. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  12. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  13. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  14. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  15. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  16. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  17. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  18. That must've been a ________________.
  19. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  20. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  21. She's very handy with a ________________.
  22. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  23. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  24. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a line of people
  2. leaves — to go away
  3. saw — the tool
  4. fork — in a road
  5. chest — of your body
  6. rush — hurry
  7. leaves — lets stay
  8. rush — to hurry
  9. file — a document
  10. track — a path
  11. saw — past of 'see'
  12. lash — to lash out
  13. fork — to eat with
  14. track — a song
  15. fork — a garden tool
  16. file — a tool
  17. track — to keep track
  18. rush — a thrill
  19. leaves — of a tree
  20. lash — an eyelash
  21. saw — the tool
  22. chest — a box
  23. lash — a whip stroke
  24. chest — of your body

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