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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. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  2. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  3. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  8. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  9. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  10. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  11. The ________________ went through the wall.
  12. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  13. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  14. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  15. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  16. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  19. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  20. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  21. When will it ________________ you to start?
  22. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  23. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  24. He's taking a ________________ right now.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — on a finger
  2. club — for golf
  3. file — a line of people
  4. chest — of your body
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. tear — from crying
  7. wave — a sudden rise
  8. shower — rain
  9. file — a document
  10. wave — of the sea
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. tear — from crying
  13. chest — a box
  14. club — for dancing
  15. file — a tool
  16. wave — with your hand
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. chest — of your body
  19. suit — in cards
  20. club — a group
  21. suit — to fit
  22. tear — to rip
  23. suit — clothes
  24. shower — to wash

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