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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. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  2. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  5. David sat on the ________________.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  8. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  9. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  10. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  11. I can't ________________ this cold.
  12. There's no middle ________________.
  13. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  16. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  17. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  20. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  21. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  22. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  23. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  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. file — a tool
  2. current — happening now
  3. field — for sport
  4. race — humankind
  5. swing — to play on
  6. field — a subject
  7. stand — for spectators
  8. ground — crushed
  9. file — a line of people
  10. stand — on your feet
  11. stand — to bear
  12. ground — a position
  13. wake — a trail
  14. field — farmland
  15. wake — to stop sleeping
  16. current — of water
  17. wake — before a funeral
  18. race — a contest
  19. race — the arms race
  20. swing — music
  21. current — electric
  22. ground — the earth
  23. swing — in golf
  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