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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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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: tear · pit · content · squash · file · land · club · hide

  1. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  2. When are we going to ________________?
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  8. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  9. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  10. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  11. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  15. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  16. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  17. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  18. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  19. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  20. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  21. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  22. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  23. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  24. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a document
  2. land — to come down
  3. tear — to rip
  4. file — a tool
  5. squash — the sport
  6. land — a country
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. club — for golf
  9. pit — in a race
  10. content — videos and posts
  11. club — for dancing
  12. tear — from crying
  13. content — the amount
  14. pit — a fruit stone
  15. pit — a hole
  16. tear — from crying
  17. club — a group
  18. hide — animal skin
  19. content — happy
  20. land — ground
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. squash — to crush
  23. file — a line of people
  24. squash — the vegetable

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