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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: rash · tear · track · file · land · rule · sharp · chest

  1. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  2. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  3. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  4. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  5. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  6. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  7. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  8. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  9. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  10. It's one o'clock ________________.
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  13. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  14. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  15. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  16. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  17. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  21. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  22. Don't do anything ________________.
  23. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  24. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — a box
  2. track — a path
  3. rash — on the skin
  4. rule — to rule out
  5. file — a tool
  6. rule — government
  7. rule — a law
  8. track — to keep track
  9. file — a line of people
  10. sharp — exactly
  11. land — to come down
  12. tear — from crying
  13. chest — of your body
  14. rash — a series
  15. sharp — with an edge
  16. sharp — clever
  17. land — a country
  18. tear — from crying
  19. tear — to rip
  20. track — a song
  21. file — a document
  22. rash — hasty
  23. chest — of your body
  24. land — ground

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