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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 116 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. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  2. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  6. Where did you ________________ them?
  7. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  8. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  9. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  10. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  11. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  17. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  18. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  19. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  20. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  21. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  22. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  24. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a quarrel
  2. race — a contest
  3. chair — to sit on
  4. file — a tool
  5. row — a line
  6. mug — to rob
  7. snap — to speak sharply
  8. firm — decided
  9. march — the month
  10. chair — a leader
  11. firm — a company
  12. row — to paddle
  13. chair — a professorship
  14. march — the month
  15. race — humankind
  16. file — a document
  17. mug — a face
  18. race — the arms race
  19. file — a line of people
  20. mug — a cup
  21. snap — to click
  22. snap — to snap out of it
  23. march — music
  24. firm — steady

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