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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. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  2. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  3. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  4. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  5. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  6. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  7. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  8. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  9. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  10. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  15. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  16. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  17. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  19. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  20. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  21. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  22. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  23. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  24. There's no middle ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. race — a contest
  2. file — a tool
  3. pound — to hit hard
  4. race — the arms race
  5. staff — employees
  6. trunk — of an elephant
  7. trunk — of a car
  8. tear — from crying
  9. staff — employees
  10. pound — for dogs
  11. tear — from crying
  12. ground — the earth
  13. file — a document
  14. deal — an agreement
  15. deal — a big deal
  16. pound — a weight
  17. staff — a stick
  18. tear — to rip
  19. trunk — of a tree
  20. race — humankind
  21. deal — to handle
  22. file — a line of people
  23. ground — crushed
  24. ground — a position

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