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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: file · roll · hand · leaves · straw · pop

  1. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  2. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  3. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  4. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  5. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  6. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  7. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  8. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  9. You don't need to ________________ round.
  10. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  11. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. We're on a ________________ here.
  15. We're almost out of ________________.
  16. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a cake
  2. pop — music
  3. file — a line of people
  4. straw — a straw man
  5. file — a document
  6. leaves — lets stay
  7. leaves — of a tree
  8. leaves — to go away
  9. pop — to visit
  10. file — a tool
  11. roll — a list
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. roll — on a roll
  15. pop — soda
  16. hand — in cards
  17. hand — help
  18. straw — dry grass

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