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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.

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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: rest · band · hand · craft · present · bear · last · file

  1. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  2. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  3. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  4. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  9. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  10. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  11. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  12. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  13. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  14. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  15. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  16. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  17. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  19. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  20. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  21. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  22. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  23. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  24. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a document
  2. bear — the animal
  3. craft — a handicraft
  4. hand — help
  5. last — to go on
  6. present — a gift
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. file — a tool
  9. band — a music group
  10. craft — boats
  11. rest — what's left
  12. bear — to put up with
  13. file — a line of people
  14. craft — a skill
  15. band — a rubber band
  16. last — final
  17. rest — what's left
  18. last — finally
  19. present — the time now
  20. hand — in cards
  21. band — a ring
  22. bear — the animal
  23. rest — a break
  24. present — there

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