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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 · last · bat · tear · lie · fall · plane · fine

  1. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  5. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  9. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  10. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  11. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  12. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  13. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  14. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. The ________________ took off on time.
  17. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  18. False peace will not ________________.
  19. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  20. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  21. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  22. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. I assure you, everything's ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — for baseball
  2. tear — to rip
  3. tear — from crying
  4. plane — a tool
  5. fall — to drop
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. tear — from crying
  8. plane — in geometry
  9. fine — a penalty
  10. file — a tool
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. lie — to recline
  13. fall — to drop
  14. fall — the season
  15. bat — the animal
  16. plane — an aircraft
  17. lie — an untruth
  18. last — to go on
  19. fine — high quality
  20. last — final
  21. file — a document
  22. file — a line of people
  23. last — finally
  24. fine — all right

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