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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 · lash · tear · drill · arm · hand · perch · ground

  1. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  2. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  3. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  4. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  5. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  9. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  14. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  15. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  16. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  17. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  18. There's no middle ________________.
  19. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  20. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  21. My father caught me by the ________________.
  22. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  24. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. ground — the earth
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. ground — crushed
  5. file — a line of people
  6. tear — from crying
  7. tear — to rip
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. drill — the tool
  10. tear — from crying
  11. drill — a practice
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. hand — help
  14. lash — an eyelash
  15. file — a document
  16. arm — a part of something
  17. lash — a whip stroke
  18. ground — a position
  19. lash — to lash out
  20. file — a tool
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. hand — in cards
  23. drill — army training
  24. perch — the fish

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