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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 · fine · straw · snap · club · lie · bear · staff

  1. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  2. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  3. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  4. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  5. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  6. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  9. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  10. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  11. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  12. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  13. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  14. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  15. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  16. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  17. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  18. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  19. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  20. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  21. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  22. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  23. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  24. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a document
  2. fine — high quality
  3. staff — employees
  4. staff — employees
  5. club — a group
  6. club — for golf
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. lie — to recline
  9. straw — a straw man
  10. snap — to speak sharply
  11. straw — to clutch at straws
  12. bear — the animal
  13. file — a tool
  14. bear — the animal
  15. staff — a stick
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. fine — all right
  18. fine — a penalty
  19. snap — to click
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. bear — to put up with
  22. club — for dancing
  23. snap — to snap out of it
  24. file — a line of people

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