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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. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  2. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  3. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  4. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  5. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  6. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  7. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  8. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  9. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  12. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  15. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  16. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  17. I'll be taking the ________________.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  20. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  21. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  22. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  23. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  24. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — part of the body
  2. craft — boats
  3. craft — a handicraft
  4. race — humankind
  5. cap — a hat
  6. pound — to hit hard
  7. file — a tool
  8. pound — for dogs
  9. file — a line of people
  10. file — a document
  11. cap — a lid
  12. rest — what's left
  13. hand — in cards
  14. cap — of ice
  15. tube — a container
  16. race — the arms race
  17. tube — the underground
  18. hand — help
  19. rest — a break
  20. race — a contest
  21. pound — a weight
  22. tube — in a tire
  23. craft — a skill
  24. rest — what's left

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