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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 116 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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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 · tear · bay · snap · firm · drill · cell · present

  1. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  2. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  3. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  4. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  7. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  11. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  14. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  15. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  18. My mare is ________________ in color.
  19. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  20. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  21. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  22. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  23. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  24. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — decided
  2. snap — to speak sharply
  3. drill — a practice
  4. tear — from crying
  5. cell — a phone
  6. drill — army training
  7. present — there
  8. tear — from crying
  9. file — a tool
  10. bay — to keep at bay
  11. file — a document
  12. tear — to rip
  13. present — a gift
  14. firm — steady
  15. cell — in biology
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. snap — to snap out of it
  18. bay — a horse colour
  19. drill — the tool
  20. bay — a part of the sea
  21. firm — a company
  22. file — a line of people
  23. present — the time now
  24. snap — to click

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