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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. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  4. When will it ________________ you to start?
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  7. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  8. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  9. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  10. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  11. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  12. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  16. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  19. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. How do you ________________ your surname?
  23. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  24. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a tool
  2. capital — a city
  3. kid — child
  4. suit — to fit
  5. spell — a short time
  6. suit — clothes
  7. race — a contest
  8. spell — magic
  9. race — humankind
  10. safe — out of danger
  11. track — a path
  12. track — to keep track
  13. kid — to tease
  14. capital — money
  15. track — a song
  16. suit — in cards
  17. file — a document
  18. race — the arms race
  19. file — a line of people
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. spell — letters
  23. safe — a strongbox
  24. safe — out of danger

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