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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. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  4. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  5. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  6. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  7. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  10. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  11. Did you ________________ the meat?
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  14. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  15. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  16. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  17. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  19. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  20. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  21. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  22. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  23. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  24. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — to pay attention
  2. tear — from crying
  3. staff — employees
  4. staff — employees
  5. season — in sport
  6. race — humankind
  7. fine — a penalty
  8. race — the arms race
  9. rest — what's left
  10. file — a line of people
  11. season — to add flavour
  12. tear — from crying
  13. rest — a break
  14. race — a contest
  15. file — a document
  16. mark — a grade
  17. mark — a trace
  18. file — a tool
  19. staff — a stick
  20. tear — to rip
  21. fine — all right
  22. fine — high quality
  23. season — of the year
  24. rest — what's left

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