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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. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  2. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  5. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  6. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  7. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  8. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  9. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  12. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  13. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  14. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  15. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  16. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  17. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  18. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.

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

Answer key

  1. race — the arms race
  2. foot — a measure
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. rest — what's left
  5. race — a contest
  6. toast — a drink to someone
  7. chair — a leader
  8. chair — to sit on
  9. foot — part of the body
  10. file — a document
  11. file — a line of people
  12. toast — bread
  13. file — a tool
  14. rest — a break
  15. foot — the bottom
  16. race — humankind
  17. rest — what's left
  18. toast — the most admired

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