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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: file · cell · cabinet · land · race · mate

  1. When are we going to ________________?
  2. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  3. What do you think of the new ________________?
  4. He was locked up in a ________________.
  5. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  6. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  7. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  10. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  11. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  12. Have you found your soul ________________?
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  15. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  18. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?

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

Answer key

  1. land — to come down
  2. land — a country
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. cell — in a prison
  5. file — a line of people
  6. cell — a phone
  7. mate — to breed
  8. race — the arms race
  9. race — humankind
  10. land — ground
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. mate — a partner
  13. file — a document
  14. file — a tool
  15. cabinet — a cupboard
  16. cell — in biology
  17. race — a contest
  18. mate — a friend

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