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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 120 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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: tear · bass · cabinet · file · capital · hide · saw · lie

  1. What do you think of the new ________________?
  2. She's very handy with a ________________.
  3. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  6. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  7. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  13. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  18. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  19. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  20. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. He works in a ________________ mill.
  23. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  24. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. saw — the tool
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. hide — animal skin
  6. lie — an untruth
  7. file — a line of people
  8. tear — to rip
  9. file — a tool
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. tear — from crying
  12. saw — past of 'see'
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. file — a document
  15. tear — from crying
  16. capital — a city
  17. bass — the fish
  18. cabinet — a cupboard
  19. lie — to recline
  20. bass — the instrument
  21. capital — money
  22. saw — the tool
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. bass — low music

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