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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: mate · race · rest · pop · cabinet · snap · file · plane

  1. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  2. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  3. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  4. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  5. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  6. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  7. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  8. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  9. Have you found your soul ________________?
  10. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  11. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  12. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  13. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  14. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  15. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  16. We're almost out of ________________.
  17. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  18. The ________________ took off on time.
  19. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  20. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  21. You don't need to ________________ round.
  22. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  23. What do you think of the new ________________?
  24. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. snap — to snap out of it
  3. rest — a break
  4. race — a contest
  5. mate — a friend
  6. cabinet — a cupboard
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. file — a document
  9. mate — a partner
  10. rest — what's left
  11. mate — to breed
  12. snap — to speak sharply
  13. plane — a tool
  14. snap — to click
  15. file — a tool
  16. pop — soda
  17. pop — music
  18. plane — an aircraft
  19. plane — in geometry
  20. race — humankind
  21. pop — to visit
  22. race — the arms race
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. file — a line of people

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