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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.

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: cell · mate · pop · rash · file · saw · wound · fall

  1. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  2. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  3. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  4. We're almost out of ________________.
  5. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  6. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  7. He was locked up in a ________________.
  8. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  9. Don't do anything ________________.
  10. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  11. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  14. Have you found your soul ________________?
  15. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  16. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  17. He works in a ________________ mill.
  18. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  19. You don't need to ________________ round.
  20. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  21. She's very handy with a ________________.
  22. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  23. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  24. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — a series
  2. file — a tool
  3. pop — music
  4. pop — soda
  5. file — a document
  6. mate — to breed
  7. cell — in a prison
  8. cell — a phone
  9. rash — hasty
  10. saw — past of 'see'
  11. wound — an injury
  12. wound — an injury
  13. fall — to drop
  14. mate — a partner
  15. mate — a friend
  16. fall — to drop
  17. saw — the tool
  18. rash — on the skin
  19. pop — to visit
  20. fall — the season
  21. saw — the tool
  22. wound — past of 'wind'
  23. file — a line of people
  24. cell — in biology

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