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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: fall · saw · file · bat · rest · stick · band · can

  1. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  2. He works in a ________________ mill.
  3. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  4. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  5. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  6. She's very handy with a ________________.
  7. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  8. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  9. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  10. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  11. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  12. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  15. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  16. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  20. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  21. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  22. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  23. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  24. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. saw — the tool
  3. file — a tool
  4. file — a document
  5. can — to be able to
  6. saw — the tool
  7. rest — a break
  8. band — a music group
  9. stick — to attach or keep to
  10. band — a ring
  11. file — a line of people
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. rest — what's left
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. saw — past of 'see'
  17. bat — the animal
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. fall — to drop
  20. band — a rubber band
  21. fall — the season
  22. fall — to drop
  23. can — a tin
  24. can — a tin

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