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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: content · lash · chest · fall · pop · pass · mate · file

  1. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  2. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  3. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  4. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  5. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  6. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  7. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  8. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  9. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  10. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  11. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  12. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  13. You don't need to ________________ round.
  14. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  15. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  18. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  19. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  20. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  21. Have you found your soul ________________?
  22. We're almost out of ________________.
  23. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  24. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a tool
  2. pop — music
  3. file — a document
  4. fall — the season
  5. fall — to drop
  6. lash — a whip stroke
  7. lash — to lash out
  8. file — a line of people
  9. mate — to breed
  10. chest — of your body
  11. mate — a friend
  12. pass — to succeed
  13. pop — to visit
  14. lash — an eyelash
  15. content — happy
  16. chest — a box
  17. pass — a permit
  18. fall — to drop
  19. content — the amount
  20. chest — of your body
  21. mate — a partner
  22. pop — soda
  23. content — videos and posts
  24. pass — to spend time

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