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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: file · rest · safe · coach · mine · race · bat · drill

  1. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  2. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  5. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  6. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  7. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  8. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  9. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  10. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  11. Have you met the new head ________________?
  12. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  13. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  14. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  15. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  16. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  17. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  18. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  19. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  20. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  21. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  22. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  23. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  24. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a line of people
  2. mine — for digging
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. race — the arms race
  5. safe — out of danger
  6. rest — what's left
  7. file — a document
  8. race — humankind
  9. safe — a strongbox
  10. drill — the tool
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. mine — belonging to me
  13. drill — army training
  14. race — a contest
  15. bat — in an idiom
  16. file — a tool
  17. safe — out of danger
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. coach — pulled by horses
  20. bat — for baseball
  21. bat — the animal
  22. rest — a break
  23. drill — a practice
  24. rest — what's left

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