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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 · field · rule · scale · tear · dip · bore · net

  1. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  7. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  11. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  12. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  15. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  19. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  22. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  23. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  24. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. dip — to dunk
  3. field — a subject
  4. net — after costs
  5. tear — from crying
  6. rule — government
  7. bore — to tire
  8. tear — to rip
  9. file — a tool
  10. scale — in music
  11. rule — to rule out
  12. dip — a sauce
  13. field — farmland
  14. bore — gave birth
  15. dip — to sink
  16. file — a line of people
  17. net — in sport
  18. bore — to drill
  19. net — for catching
  20. tear — from crying
  21. scale — size or range
  22. scale — for weighing
  23. file — a document
  24. rule — a law

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