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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: file · present · hide · chair · pass · date · drill · wind

  1. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  2. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  3. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  6. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  7. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  8. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  11. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  12. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  13. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  14. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  15. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  16. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  20. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  21. Have you settled on a ________________?
  22. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  23. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  24. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.

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

Answer key

  1. date — on the calendar
  2. drill — the tool
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. file — a tool
  5. chair — a leader
  6. drill — a practice
  7. file — a line of people
  8. pass — to succeed
  9. wind — moving air
  10. pass — a permit
  11. present — the time now
  12. pass — to spend time
  13. chair — to sit on
  14. date — the fruit
  15. hide — animal skin
  16. present — there
  17. wind — moving air
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. chair — a professorship
  21. date — on the calendar
  22. file — a document
  23. present — a gift
  24. drill — army training

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