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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. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  2. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  6. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  7. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  8. The ________________ took off on time.
  9. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  10. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  11. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. That was a fun ________________.
  14. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  15. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  16. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  17. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  19. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  20. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  21. When was this ________________ built?
  22. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  23. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  24. The players ran onto the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a line of people
  2. game — wild animals
  3. pitch — a sales talk
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. pitch — completely
  6. race — the arms race
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. plane — an aircraft
  9. race — a contest
  10. temple — side of the head
  11. present — there
  12. race — humankind
  13. game — a match
  14. present — the time now
  15. plane — a tool
  16. file — a document
  17. wake — to stop sleeping
  18. file — a tool
  19. wake — a trail
  20. plane — in geometry
  21. temple — a place of worship
  22. present — a gift
  23. wake — before a funeral
  24. pitch — a sports field

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