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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. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  4. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  5. There's no middle ________________.
  6. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  7. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  8. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  9. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  10. That must've been a ________________.
  11. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  12. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  13. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  14. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  15. It's one o'clock ________________.
  16. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  19. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  22. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  23. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  24. Boris sat near the fire ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a line of people
  2. mine — belonging to me
  3. track — a song
  4. rush — to hurry
  5. ground — a position
  6. mine — an explosive
  7. sharp — clever
  8. file — a document
  9. ground — the earth
  10. rush — a thrill
  11. track — to keep track
  12. pit — in a race
  13. pit — a fruit stone
  14. track — a path
  15. sharp — exactly
  16. rush — hurry
  17. tear — to rip
  18. tear — from crying
  19. mine — for digging
  20. tear — from crying
  21. sharp — with an edge
  22. ground — crushed
  23. file — a tool
  24. pit — a hole

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