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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: file · tear · land · bank · fall · lie · pop · spring

  1. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  2. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  3. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  4. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  5. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  6. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. You don't need to ________________ round.
  15. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  16. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  17. We're almost out of ________________.
  18. When are we going to ________________?
  19. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  20. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  21. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  24. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a line of people
  2. file — a tool
  3. fall — the season
  4. tear — from crying
  5. fall — to drop
  6. fall — to drop
  7. tear — to rip
  8. bank — of a river
  9. land — ground
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. spring — a coil
  12. file — a document
  13. spring — of water
  14. pop — to visit
  15. lie — to recline
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. pop — soda
  18. land — to come down
  19. bank — for money
  20. bank — for money
  21. pop — music
  22. land — a country
  23. spring — the season
  24. tear — from crying

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