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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. That must've been a ________________.
  2. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  3. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  4. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  5. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  6. This piece is in a major ________________.
  7. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  8. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  9. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  10. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  11. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  12. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  13. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  14. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  15. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  16. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  17. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  20. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  21. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  22. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  23. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  24. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — a thrill
  2. wake — before a funeral
  3. file — a document
  4. file — a line of people
  5. key — the most important part
  6. key — in music
  7. wake — a trail
  8. wake — to stop sleeping
  9. drill — army training
  10. rush — to hurry
  11. rush — hurry
  12. drill — the tool
  13. file — a tool
  14. pitch — a sales talk
  15. object — an aim
  16. object — to protest
  17. pitch — a sports field
  18. race — a contest
  19. drill — a practice
  20. race — humankind
  21. key — for a lock
  22. object — a thing
  23. pitch — completely
  24. race — the arms race

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