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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 116 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. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. That must've been a ________________.
  5. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  6. The ________________ went through the wall.
  7. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  8. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  9. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  12. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  15. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  16. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  17. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.
  19. This piece is in a major ________________.
  20. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  21. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  22. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  23. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  24. We took cover from the thunder ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a line of people
  2. file — a tool
  3. cell — a phone
  4. rush — a thrill
  5. rush — hurry
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. key — for a lock
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. shower — to wash
  10. cell — in biology
  11. wound — past of 'wind'
  12. wound — an injury
  13. file — a document
  14. nail — on a finger
  15. object — to protest
  16. object — a thing
  17. object — an aim
  18. cell — in a prison
  19. key — in music
  20. key — the most important part
  21. wound — an injury
  22. rush — to hurry
  23. shower — a meteor shower
  24. shower — rain

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