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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. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  2. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  3. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  4. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  5. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  6. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. We're on a ________________ here.
  9. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  10. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  11. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  12. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  13. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  14. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  15. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  16. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  17. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  18. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  19. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  20. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  21. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  22. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  23. That must've been a ________________.
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. bear — to put up with
  2. file — a tool
  3. land — a country
  4. roll — a cake
  5. land — ground
  6. staff — employees
  7. race — the arms race
  8. roll — on a roll
  9. roll — a list
  10. file — a line of people
  11. bear — the animal
  12. race — a contest
  13. rush — to hurry
  14. rush — hurry
  15. staff — a stick
  16. staff — employees
  17. lean — thin
  18. lean — to rest against
  19. bear — the animal
  20. lean — to bend
  21. file — a document
  22. race — humankind
  23. rush — a thrill
  24. land — to come down

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