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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. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  2. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  3. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  4. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  5. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  6. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  7. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  8. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  9. I can't ________________ this cold.
  10. When are we going to ________________?
  11. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  12. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  13. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  14. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  21. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  22. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  23. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  24. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — on your feet
  2. fan — to cool the air
  3. race — the arms race
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. file — a tool
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. chair — a professorship
  8. pass — to succeed
  9. stand — to bear
  10. land — to come down
  11. pass — to spend time
  12. land — a country
  13. pass — a permit
  14. file — a line of people
  15. race — humankind
  16. race — a contest
  17. chair — to sit on
  18. file — a document
  19. land — ground
  20. vault — a safe
  21. vault — in gymnastics
  22. chair — a leader
  23. vault — an arched ceiling
  24. stand — for spectators

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