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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: nail · saw · rush · file · hide · field · bass · degree

  1. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  2. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. She's very handy with a ________________.
  7. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  8. The ________________ went through the wall.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. He works in a ________________ mill.
  11. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  12. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  13. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. That must've been a ________________.
  17. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  18. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  19. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  22. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  23. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  24. We have nothing to ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a tool
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. field — for sport
  4. degree — an amount
  5. field — a subject
  6. saw — the tool
  7. bass — the instrument
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. field — farmland
  10. saw — the tool
  11. bass — low music
  12. rush — to hurry
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. file — a document
  15. degree — from a university
  16. rush — a thrill
  17. hide — animal skin
  18. file — a line of people
  19. bass — the fish
  20. degree — temperature
  21. saw — past of 'see'
  22. nail — on a finger
  23. rush — hurry
  24. hide — to keep secret

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