ClueBy
TodayArchiveWord list

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.

Make a worksheet

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
YesNo
↻ New worksheet

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 · saw · race · swing · tear · stem · wound · fall

  1. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  2. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  3. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  4. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  5. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. He works in a ________________ mill.
  8. David sat on the ________________.
  9. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  10. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  11. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  12. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  13. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  19. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  20. She's very handy with a ________________.
  21. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  22. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  23. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  24. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — to come from
  2. file — a document
  3. file — a tool
  4. race — the arms race
  5. fall — to drop
  6. tear — from crying
  7. saw — the tool
  8. swing — to play on
  9. fall — the season
  10. stem — of a plant
  11. stem — a stem cell
  12. tear — from crying
  13. file — a line of people
  14. wound — an injury
  15. tear — to rip
  16. wound — an injury
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. swing — in golf
  19. swing — music
  20. saw — the tool
  21. race — a contest
  22. saw — past of 'see'
  23. fall — to drop
  24. race — humankind

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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