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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: game · nail · spring · stick · sharp · swing · race · file

  1. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  2. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  3. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  4. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  5. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  6. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  9. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. David sat on the ________________.
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  14. That was a fun ________________.
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. It's one o'clock ________________.
  18. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  19. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  20. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  21. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  22. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  23. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  24. The ________________ went through the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. game — wild animals
  2. file — a document
  3. swing — music
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. race — a contest
  6. nail — on a finger
  7. race — the arms race
  8. spring — a coil
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. spring — of water
  11. swing — to play on
  12. spring — the season
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. game — a match
  15. race — humankind
  16. file — a line of people
  17. sharp — exactly
  18. swing — in golf
  19. sharp — with an edge
  20. sharp — clever
  21. file — a tool
  22. game — a kind of play
  23. stick — to attach or keep to
  24. nail — for a hammer

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