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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: tear · craft · squash · file · club · lie

  1. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  2. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  3. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  4. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  7. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  8. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  9. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  10. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  11. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  12. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  13. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  14. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  15. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  18. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. lie — an untruth
  3. file — a document
  4. club — for dancing
  5. tear — from crying
  6. squash — the vegetable
  7. squash — the sport
  8. file — a tool
  9. lie — to recline
  10. craft — boats
  11. file — a line of people
  12. craft — a skill
  13. club — for golf
  14. craft — a handicraft
  15. squash — to crush
  16. tear — to rip
  17. lie — an untruth
  18. club — a group

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