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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: bore · tear · file · rock · last · land · mark · straw

  1. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  2. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  3. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  4. When are we going to ________________?
  5. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  9. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  12. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  15. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  16. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  17. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  18. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  22. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  24. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?

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

Answer key

  1. file — a tool
  2. bore — gave birth
  3. mark — a trace
  4. land — to come down
  5. mark — a grade
  6. last — final
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. last — finally
  9. land — a country
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. bore — to drill
  12. rock — to move gently
  13. tear — to rip
  14. rock — a stone
  15. file — a document
  16. land — ground
  17. mark — to pay attention
  18. file — a line of people
  19. tear — from crying
  20. last — to go on
  21. rock — music
  22. straw — to clutch at straws
  23. tear — from crying
  24. bore — to tire

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