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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 · lie · hide · cue · fall · racket · straw · rash

  1. Don't do anything ________________.
  2. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  3. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  6. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  7. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  8. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  9. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  10. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  11. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  12. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  13. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  16. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  17. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  18. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  19. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  20. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  21. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  22. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  23. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  24. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — hasty
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. rash — on the skin
  4. fall — to drop
  5. fall — the season
  6. file — a document
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. cue — a signal
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. file — a tool
  12. racket — a loud noise
  13. rash — a series
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. fall — to drop
  16. cue — for pool
  17. cue — a hint
  18. straw — to clutch at straws
  19. straw — dry grass
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. lie — an untruth
  22. lie — to recline
  23. file — a line of people
  24. hide — animal skin

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