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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: last · bark · file · pass · nail · stick · tear · net

  1. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  2. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  3. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  4. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  9. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  10. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  11. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  12. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  13. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  14. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  17. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  18. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. The ________________ went through the wall.
  21. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  22. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  23. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  24. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — on a finger
  2. net — for catching
  3. nail — for a hammer
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. last — final
  6. pass — to succeed
  7. last — to go on
  8. file — a line of people
  9. bark — of a tree
  10. net — after costs
  11. file — a document
  12. stick — to attach or keep to
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. bark — to shout
  15. tear — to rip
  16. file — a tool
  17. pass — to spend time
  18. pass — a permit
  19. last — finally
  20. nail — for a hammer
  21. net — in sport
  22. tear — from crying
  23. bark — a dog's sound
  24. tear — from crying

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