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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's quite ________________, isn't he?
  2. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  3. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  4. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  5. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  6. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  7. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  8. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  9. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  10. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  11. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  12. It's one o'clock ________________.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  16. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  17. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  18. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  19. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  20. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  21. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  22. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  23. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  24. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — clever
  2. pass — a permit
  3. stem — to come from
  4. pass — to succeed
  5. race — a contest
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. file — a line of people
  8. cap — of ice
  9. cap — a lid
  10. race — the arms race
  11. stem — of a plant
  12. sharp — exactly
  13. last — to go on
  14. last — finally
  15. file — a document
  16. race — humankind
  17. pass — to spend time
  18. hide — animal skin
  19. sharp — with an edge
  20. last — final
  21. file — a tool
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. stem — a stem cell
  24. cap — a hat

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