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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. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  2. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  3. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  4. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  5. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  6. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  9. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  10. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  11. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  14. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  15. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  16. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  17. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  20. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  21. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  22. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  23. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  24. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. rest — what's left
  3. file — a tool
  4. root — the cause
  5. current — electric
  6. fall — to drop
  7. race — humankind
  8. file — a line of people
  9. rest — what's left
  10. race — a contest
  11. current — of water
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. rest — a break
  14. root — of a plant
  15. fall — the season
  16. root — of a word
  17. current — happening now
  18. file — a document
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. mouse — for a computer
  21. kid — to tease
  22. kid — child
  23. race — the arms race
  24. mouse — the animal

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