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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 120 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. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  2. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  3. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  4. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  7. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  8. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. My father caught me by the ________________.
  11. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  12. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  13. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  14. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  15. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  18. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  19. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  20. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  21. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  22. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  23. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  24. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. race — the arms race
  2. race — humankind
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. pass — to succeed
  5. kid — to tease
  6. fall — to drop
  7. staff — employees
  8. file — a document
  9. file — a tool
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. race — a contest
  12. pass — a permit
  13. face — to confront
  14. staff — employees
  15. staff — a stick
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. file — a line of people
  18. fall — to drop
  19. arm — a part of something
  20. face — to point toward
  21. fall — the season
  22. pass — to spend time
  23. face — part of the head
  24. kid — child

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