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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.

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 · root · wound · squash · season · tube · tear · lean

  1. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  2. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  3. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  4. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  5. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  8. Did you ________________ the meat?
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. I'll be taking the ________________.
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  13. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  14. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  15. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  16. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  17. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  18. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  19. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  20. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  21. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  22. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  23. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  24. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.

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

Answer key

  1. season — in sport
  2. wound — past of 'wind'
  3. lean — to bend
  4. lean — to rest against
  5. squash — to crush
  6. tear — from crying
  7. squash — the vegetable
  8. season — to add flavour
  9. file — a tool
  10. tube — the underground
  11. tear — to rip
  12. tear — from crying
  13. lean — thin
  14. file — a line of people
  15. season — of the year
  16. wound — an injury
  17. root — the cause
  18. wound — an injury
  19. squash — the sport
  20. root — of a plant
  21. tube — in a tire
  22. tube — a container
  23. file — a document
  24. root — of a word

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