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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 · hide · board · bound · hand · race · patient · pound

  1. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  2. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  3. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  4. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  5. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  6. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  9. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  10. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  11. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  12. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  15. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  16. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  17. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  18. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  19. That was ________________ to happen.
  20. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  21. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  24. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a tool
  2. board — to get on
  3. file — a document
  4. hide — animal skin
  5. bound — obliged
  6. bound — tied together
  7. race — the arms race
  8. board — a committee
  9. hand — help
  10. race — humankind
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. file — a line of people
  13. hand — in cards
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. patient — calm and waiting
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. pound — a weight
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. bound — certain
  20. pound — to hit hard
  21. pound — for dogs
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. board — a flat piece
  24. race — a contest

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