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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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Word bank
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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: snap · race · file · present · tear · rash

  1. Don't do anything ________________.
  2. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  3. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  4. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  7. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  8. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  9. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  10. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  11. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  16. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  17. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  18. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — hasty
  2. present — there
  3. file — a line of people
  4. file — a document
  5. tear — from crying
  6. present — a gift
  7. race — a contest
  8. snap — to speak sharply
  9. rash — on the skin
  10. race — humankind
  11. rash — a series
  12. tear — to rip
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. tear — from crying
  15. snap — to click
  16. file — a tool
  17. present — the time now
  18. race — the arms race

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