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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. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  2. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  5. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  6. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  9. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  13. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  14. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  15. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  16. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  17. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  18. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  22. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  23. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  24. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.

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

Answer key

  1. race — a contest
  2. file — a tool
  3. tear — from crying
  4. bat — in an idiom
  5. vault — in gymnastics
  6. wave — of the sea
  7. race — humankind
  8. lie — an untruth
  9. vault — an arched ceiling
  10. row — a line
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. row — a quarrel
  13. bat — the animal
  14. file — a line of people
  15. wave — with your hand
  16. lie — to recline
  17. row — to paddle
  18. vault — a safe
  19. tear — to rip
  20. tear — from crying
  21. race — the arms race
  22. wave — a sudden rise
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. file — a document

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