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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: pit · chest · file · race · rule · wound

  1. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  2. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  3. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  4. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  5. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  6. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  7. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  8. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  9. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  10. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  11. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  12. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  13. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  16. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  17. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  18. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a line of people
  2. race — humankind
  3. file — a document
  4. rule — to rule out
  5. pit — a fruit stone
  6. wound — an injury
  7. wound — past of 'wind'
  8. pit — in a race
  9. race — the arms race
  10. rule — a law
  11. race — a contest
  12. chest — of your body
  13. file — a tool
  14. chest — a box
  15. pit — a hole
  16. wound — an injury
  17. rule — government
  18. chest — of your body

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