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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. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  2. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  3. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  4. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. When was this ________________ built?
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  11. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  12. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  13. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  16. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  17. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  18. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  19. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  22. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  23. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  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. race — a contest
  2. mark — to pay attention
  3. rule — government
  4. club — for dancing
  5. race — the arms race
  6. temple — a place of worship
  7. race — humankind
  8. club — for golf
  9. last — final
  10. pound — for dogs
  11. pound — a weight
  12. rule — a law
  13. mark — a grade
  14. last — finally
  15. rule — to rule out
  16. temple — a place of worship
  17. file — a tool
  18. temple — side of the head
  19. mark — a trace
  20. last — to go on
  21. club — a group
  22. pound — to hit hard
  23. file — a line of people
  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