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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: lean · race · file · temple · press · wave

  1. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  2. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  3. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  4. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  5. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  6. When was this ________________ built?
  7. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  8. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. Did you ________________ the button?
  11. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  12. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  13. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  14. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  15. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  16. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  17. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  18. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. press — a publisher
  2. lean — to rest against
  3. wave — a sudden rise
  4. lean — to bend
  5. temple — a place of worship
  6. temple — a place of worship
  7. file — a document
  8. race — a contest
  9. file — a tool
  10. press — to push
  11. lean — thin
  12. wave — with your hand
  13. race — the arms race
  14. wave — of the sea
  15. temple — side of the head
  16. press — newspapers
  17. race — humankind
  18. file — a line of people

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