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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 · band · kick · roll · season · cap · file · fall

  1. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  2. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  3. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  4. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  5. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  6. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  7. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  8. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  11. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  12. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  17. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  19. We're on a ________________ here.
  20. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  21. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  22. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  23. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  24. Did you ________________ the meat?

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

Answer key

  1. file — a document
  2. season — in sport
  3. cap — a hat
  4. fall — the season
  5. roll — a cake
  6. cap — a lid
  7. fall — to drop
  8. kick — in football
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. cap — of ice
  11. file — a line of people
  12. fall — to drop
  13. tear — from crying
  14. band — a music group
  15. tear — from crying
  16. band — a ring
  17. roll — a list
  18. file — a tool
  19. roll — on a roll
  20. season — of the year
  21. kick — a thrill
  22. kick — with a leg
  23. tear — to rip
  24. season — to add flavour

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