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

Word bank: season · pitch · tear · rule · straw · file · stick · lie

  1. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  2. Did you ________________ the meat?
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  6. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  7. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  8. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  9. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  10. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  11. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  12. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  16. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  17. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  18. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  19. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  20. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  21. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  22. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  23. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  24. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — dry grass
  2. season — to add flavour
  3. tear — from crying
  4. tear — to rip
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. file — a tool
  7. pitch — a sports field
  8. rule — to rule out
  9. season — of the year
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. stick — to attach or keep to
  13. tear — from crying
  14. file — a document
  15. season — in sport
  16. rule — government
  17. rule — a law
  18. lie — to recline
  19. straw — a straw man
  20. stick — a piece of wood
  21. file — a line of people
  22. pitch — a sales talk
  23. pitch — completely
  24. straw — to clutch at straws

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