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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: tear · hide · roll · craft · face · deal · cell · file

  1. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  2. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  3. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  4. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  5. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  6. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  7. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  8. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  9. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  10. We're on a ________________ here.
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  14. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  17. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  18. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  19. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  20. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  21. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  22. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  23. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  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. cell — a phone
  2. cell — in biology
  3. file — a document
  4. craft — a skill
  5. deal — to handle
  6. deal — a big deal
  7. face — to confront
  8. craft — a handicraft
  9. hide — animal skin
  10. roll — on a roll
  11. tear — to rip
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. craft — boats
  14. file — a tool
  15. tear — from crying
  16. face — to point toward
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. roll — a cake
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. face — part of the head
  21. tear — from crying
  22. deal — an agreement
  23. roll — a list
  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