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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: chair · pass · track · craft · rash · mate · drill · file

  1. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  2. Don't do anything ________________.
  3. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  4. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  5. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  6. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  7. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  8. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  9. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  10. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  11. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  12. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  13. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  14. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  15. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  16. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  17. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  18. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  19. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  20. Have you found your soul ________________?
  21. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  22. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  24. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a tool
  2. rash — hasty
  3. drill — a practice
  4. pass — to spend time
  5. chair — a professorship
  6. track — a song
  7. craft — a handicraft
  8. craft — boats
  9. pass — to succeed
  10. chair — a leader
  11. rash — a series
  12. chair — to sit on
  13. track — to keep track
  14. mate — a friend
  15. pass — a permit
  16. drill — the tool
  17. file — a line of people
  18. track — a path
  19. file — a document
  20. mate — a partner
  21. rash — on the skin
  22. craft — a skill
  23. drill — army training
  24. mate — to breed

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