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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. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  2. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  3. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  4. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  5. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  6. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  7. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  8. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  9. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  10. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  11. He was locked up in a ________________.
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  14. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  15. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  16. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  17. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  18. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  19. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  20. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  21. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. Have you found your soul ________________?
  24. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a friend
  2. snap — to speak sharply
  3. mate — to breed
  4. root — the cause
  5. file — a document
  6. race — the arms race
  7. snap — to click
  8. race — a contest
  9. file — a line of people
  10. racket — a loud noise
  11. cell — in a prison
  12. shower — rain
  13. cell — a phone
  14. shower — to wash
  15. root — of a word
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. file — a tool
  18. snap — to snap out of it
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. root — of a plant
  21. race — humankind
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. mate — a partner
  24. cell — in biology

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