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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: stem · object · rule · ball · fall · file · cold · lash

  1. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  2. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  3. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  4. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  5. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  6. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  7. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  8. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. The King held a masked ________________.
  11. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  12. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  17. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  18. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  19. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  20. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  21. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  22. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  23. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  24. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a document
  2. object — to protest
  3. rule — government
  4. lash — an eyelash
  5. stem — to come from
  6. lash — to lash out
  7. fall — to drop
  8. rule — to rule out
  9. cold — not warm
  10. ball — a dance
  11. lash — a whip stroke
  12. stem — of a plant
  13. cold — an illness
  14. object — an aim
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. fall — to drop
  17. file — a line of people
  18. ball — a round shape
  19. rule — a law
  20. ball — a great time
  21. file — a tool
  22. stem — a stem cell
  23. fall — the season
  24. object — a thing

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