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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. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  2. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  4. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  5. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  6. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  7. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  8. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  9. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  10. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  11. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  12. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  13. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  14. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  15. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  16. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. Where did you ________________ them?
  19. There's no middle ________________.
  20. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  21. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  22. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  23. That was ________________ to happen.
  24. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. race — a contest
  3. kick — with a leg
  4. mug — a cup
  5. file — a tool
  6. kick — a thrill
  7. file — a line of people
  8. bound — obliged
  9. file — a document
  10. kick — in football
  11. ground — the earth
  12. fork — a garden tool
  13. mug — a face
  14. staff — employees
  15. staff — a stick
  16. fork — to eat with
  17. race — the arms race
  18. mug — to rob
  19. ground — a position
  20. staff — employees
  21. bound — tied together
  22. fork — in a road
  23. bound — certain
  24. race — humankind

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