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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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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 · ruler · wax · lie · cell · bat · mate · rest

  1. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  2. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  5. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  6. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  7. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  8. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  11. He was locked up in a ________________.
  12. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. Have you found your soul ________________?
  16. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  17. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  19. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  20. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  21. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  22. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  23. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  24. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — to breed
  2. bat — in an idiom
  3. bat — the animal
  4. mate — a friend
  5. ruler — a monarch
  6. file — a line of people
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. wax — in the ear
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. cell — in a prison
  12. wax — for sculpting
  13. file — a document
  14. cell — in biology
  15. mate — a partner
  16. rest — a break
  17. lie — to recline
  18. cell — a phone
  19. ruler — for measuring
  20. ruler — for measuring
  21. rest — what's left
  22. wax — to grow
  23. file — a tool
  24. rest — what's left

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