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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 · clip · land · foot · last · deal · patient · can

  1. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  2. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  4. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  5. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  6. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  7. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  8. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  11. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  12. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  13. When are we going to ________________?
  14. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  15. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  16. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  19. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  22. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  23. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  24. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.

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

Answer key

  1. foot — a measure
  2. clip — a video
  3. can — a tin
  4. last — finally
  5. foot — part of the body
  6. file — a line of people
  7. file — a tool
  8. deal — to handle
  9. last — to go on
  10. foot — the bottom
  11. clip — to cut
  12. deal — a big deal
  13. land — to come down
  14. can — to be able to
  15. last — final
  16. land — ground
  17. clip — for paper
  18. patient — calm and waiting
  19. file — a document
  20. land — a country
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. deal — an agreement
  23. can — a tin
  24. patient — a sick person

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