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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. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  2. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  3. How do you ________________ your surname?
  4. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  5. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  8. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  9. The ________________ market has crashed.
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  13. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  14. My mare is ________________ in color.
  15. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  19. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  20. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  21. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  22. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  23. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  24. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — part of the body
  2. file — a tool
  3. spell — letters
  4. band — a rubber band
  5. race — a contest
  6. chair — a leader
  7. file — a line of people
  8. bay — to keep at bay
  9. stock — shares
  10. file — a document
  11. hand — in cards
  12. race — the arms race
  13. stock — goods
  14. bay — a horse colour
  15. spell — magic
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. stock — a soup base
  18. band — a ring
  19. chair — a professorship
  20. race — humankind
  21. hand — help
  22. band — a music group
  23. bay — a part of the sea
  24. spell — a short time

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