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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. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  2. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  3. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  6. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  7. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  10. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  11. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  12. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  13. He is an ace ________________.
  14. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  17. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  20. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  21. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  22. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  23. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  24. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a line of people
  2. race — humankind
  3. stem — to come from
  4. march — music
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. content — videos and posts
  7. branch — a division
  8. race — the arms race
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. branch — of a bank
  11. content — happy
  12. branch — of a tree
  13. pitcher — in baseball
  14. stick — to attach or keep to
  15. race — a contest
  16. file — a tool
  17. march — the month
  18. file — a document
  19. march — the month
  20. stem — of a plant
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. content — the amount
  23. stem — a stem cell
  24. stick — a piece of wood

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