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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: shower · file · swing · mug · nail · rash · tear · roll

  1. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  2. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  3. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  4. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  5. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  6. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  7. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  8. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  11. We're on a ________________ here.
  12. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  13. David sat on the ________________.
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  17. Don't do anything ________________.
  18. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  19. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  20. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  21. Where did you ________________ them?
  22. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  23. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  24. The ________________ went through the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — on a finger
  2. rash — a series
  3. shower — a meteor shower
  4. mug — a cup
  5. shower — to wash
  6. swing — music
  7. roll — a cake
  8. mug — a face
  9. tear — from crying
  10. roll — a list
  11. roll — on a roll
  12. swing — in golf
  13. swing — to play on
  14. tear — from crying
  15. tear — to rip
  16. file — a document
  17. rash — hasty
  18. file — a line of people
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. shower — rain
  21. mug — to rob
  22. file — a tool
  23. rash — on the skin
  24. nail — for a hammer

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