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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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 · track · object · rash · bark · cell · pitcher · rest

  1. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  2. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  3. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  4. He was locked up in a ________________.
  5. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  6. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  9. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  10. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  11. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  12. Don't do anything ________________.
  13. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  14. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  15. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  16. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  19. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  20. He is an ace ________________.
  21. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  22. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  23. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  24. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.

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

Answer key

  1. track — to keep track
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. bark — of a tree
  4. cell — in a prison
  5. file — a tool
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. cell — a phone
  8. file — a line of people
  9. rest — what's left
  10. bark — to shout
  11. bark — a dog's sound
  12. rash — hasty
  13. object — to protest
  14. object — an aim
  15. cell — in biology
  16. rest — a break
  17. file — a document
  18. rash — a series
  19. track — a song
  20. pitcher — in baseball
  21. rash — on the skin
  22. rest — what's left
  23. object — a thing
  24. track — a path

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