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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. We're almost out of ________________.
  3. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  6. There's no middle ________________.
  7. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  8. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  9. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  10. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  11. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  12. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  13. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  14. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  15. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  18. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  19. You don't need to ________________ round.
  20. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  21. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  22. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  23. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  24. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.

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

Answer key

  1. race — a contest
  2. pop — soda
  3. ruler — for measuring
  4. chest — of your body
  5. chest — of your body
  6. ground — a position
  7. file — a line of people
  8. ground — the earth
  9. race — humankind
  10. track — a path
  11. file — a document
  12. track — a song
  13. race — the arms race
  14. pop — music
  15. ruler — for measuring
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. wound — an injury
  18. ruler — a monarch
  19. pop — to visit
  20. ground — crushed
  21. track — to keep track
  22. file — a tool
  23. wound — an injury
  24. chest — a box

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