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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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Word bank
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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. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  2. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  6. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  9. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  13. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  14. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  15. That was a fun ________________.
  16. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  17. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  19. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  20. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  21. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  22. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  23. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  24. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a document
  2. tear — from crying
  3. snap — to speak sharply
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. wax — for sculpting
  6. file — a line of people
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. bass — the instrument
  9. game — wild animals
  10. wind — moving air
  11. wind — moving air
  12. wax — in the ear
  13. bass — the fish
  14. pitch — a sports field
  15. game — a match
  16. snap — to click
  17. wax — to grow
  18. file — a tool
  19. snap — to snap out of it
  20. pitch — completely
  21. tear — from crying
  22. tear — to rip
  23. pitch — a sales talk
  24. bass — low music

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