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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. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  2. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  3. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  4. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  5. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  6. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  7. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  8. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  9. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  10. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  11. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  12. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  15. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  16. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  17. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  18. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  19. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  22. The ball is in your ________________.
  23. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  24. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of law
  2. drill — the tool
  3. file — a line of people
  4. cap — a lid
  5. bear — the animal
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. drill — a practice
  9. bear — to put up with
  10. stick — to attach or keep to
  11. drill — army training
  12. race — the arms race
  13. file — a document
  14. cap — of ice
  15. leaves — lets stay
  16. cap — a hat
  17. race — humankind
  18. leaves — of a tree
  19. race — a contest
  20. court — of a king
  21. leaves — to go away
  22. court — for sport
  23. bear — the animal
  24. file — a tool

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