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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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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. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  9. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  10. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  13. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  14. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  15. False peace will not ________________.
  16. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  17. What do you think of the new ________________?
  18. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  19. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  20. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  21. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  22. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a car
  2. shower — to wash
  3. face — part of the head
  4. file — a tool
  5. race — the arms race
  6. race — a contest
  7. last — finally
  8. file — a document
  9. trunk — of a tree
  10. present — the time now
  11. last — final
  12. face — to point toward
  13. face — to confront
  14. file — a line of people
  15. last — to go on
  16. trunk — of an elephant
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. shower — a meteor shower
  19. present — there
  20. race — humankind
  21. present — a gift
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. shower — rain
  24. cabinet — a cupboard

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