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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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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: wind · file · mouse · tear · lean · degree · face · squash

  1. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  2. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  5. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  6. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  9. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  10. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  11. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  12. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  13. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  14. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  15. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  21. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  22. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a line of people
  2. tear — from crying
  3. tear — to rip
  4. face — to confront
  5. face — part of the head
  6. file — a document
  7. degree — from a university
  8. squash — the sport
  9. mouse — for a computer
  10. file — a tool
  11. squash — to crush
  12. lean — to bend
  13. mouse — the animal
  14. squash — the vegetable
  15. face — to point toward
  16. degree — temperature
  17. tear — from crying
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. wind — moving air
  20. wind — moving air
  21. lean — thin
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. degree — an amount
  24. lean — to rest against

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