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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 116 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: sharp · saw · file · tear · bulb · drill · rash · branch

  1. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  2. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  3. She's very handy with a ________________.
  4. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  5. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  6. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  7. It's one o'clock ________________.
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  10. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  11. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  12. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  13. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  14. I've got to change the light ________________.
  15. Don't do anything ________________.
  16. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  17. He works in a ________________ mill.
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  19. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  20. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  21. The light ________________ burned out.
  22. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. We had a fire ________________ at school today.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — with an edge
  2. rash — a series
  3. saw — the tool
  4. file — a line of people
  5. sharp — clever
  6. file — a document
  7. sharp — exactly
  8. tear — to rip
  9. rash — on the skin
  10. drill — the tool
  11. saw — past of 'see'
  12. file — a tool
  13. drill — army training
  14. bulb — for light
  15. rash — hasty
  16. branch — a division
  17. saw — the tool
  18. tear — from crying
  19. branch — of a bank
  20. bulb — of a plant
  21. bulb — for light
  22. branch — of a tree
  23. tear — from crying
  24. drill — a practice

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