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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.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  2. Have you met the new head ________________?
  3. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  4. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  5. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  6. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  7. My mare is ________________ in color.
  8. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  9. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  10. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  11. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  12. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  13. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  14. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  15. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  16. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a tool
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. bay — a part of the sea
  4. coach — pulled by horses
  5. file — a line of people
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. bay — a horse colour
  8. chip — in a computer
  9. net — in sport
  10. race — the arms race
  11. file — a document
  12. net — after costs
  13. race — a contest
  14. bay — to keep at bay
  15. chip — to eat
  16. chip — for betting
  17. net — for catching
  18. race — humankind

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