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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: date · lean · race · file · rest · chair

  1. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  2. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  3. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  4. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  5. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  6. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  7. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  8. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  9. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  10. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  11. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  14. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  15. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  16. Have you settled on a ________________?
  17. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  18. I would like to have a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to rest against
  2. race — the arms race
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. chair — a professorship
  5. lean — thin
  6. file — a document
  7. file — a tool
  8. date — the fruit
  9. file — a line of people
  10. race — a contest
  11. rest — what's left
  12. race — humankind
  13. chair — a leader
  14. lean — to bend
  15. rest — what's left
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. chair — to sit on
  18. rest — a break

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