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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: wind · race · rule · squash · can · arm · racket · file

  1. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  2. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  3. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  4. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  7. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  8. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  9. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  12. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  13. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  14. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  15. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  18. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  19. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  20. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  21. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  22. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  23. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  24. My father caught me by the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. can — a tin
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. rule — to rule out
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. race — humankind
  6. can — to be able to
  7. squash — to crush
  8. arm — a part of something
  9. racket — a loud noise
  10. wind — moving air
  11. can — a tin
  12. file — a tool
  13. wind — moving air
  14. race — a contest
  15. squash — the vegetable
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. file — a line of people
  18. race — the arms race
  19. rule — government
  20. rule — a law
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. squash — the sport
  23. file — a document
  24. arm — part of the body

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