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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 124 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've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  2. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  3. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  4. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  5. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  6. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  7. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  8. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  9. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  10. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  11. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  12. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  13. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  14. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  17. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  18. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  19. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  20. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  21. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  22. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  23. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  24. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. file — a line of people
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. branch — a division
  5. racket — a loud noise
  6. branch — of a bank
  7. current — happening now
  8. file — a tool
  9. kid — child
  10. current — electric
  11. rest — what's left
  12. branch — of a tree
  13. fan — to cool the air
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. race — a contest
  16. current — of water
  17. race — humankind
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. rest — a break
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. race — the arms race
  22. kid — to tease
  23. rest — what's left
  24. file — a document

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