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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: content · pass · wind · lean · file · race · hand · prune

  1. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  5. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  6. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  7. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  10. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  11. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  15. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  16. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  19. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  20. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  21. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  22. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  23. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  24. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. file — a tool
  3. wind — moving air
  4. file — a line of people
  5. wind — to turn a key
  6. lean — to rest against
  7. prune — the fruit
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. pass — to succeed
  10. race — a contest
  11. prune — to trim
  12. race — humankind
  13. content — the amount
  14. pass — to spend time
  15. lean — to bend
  16. hand — in cards
  17. file — a document
  18. prune — to trim
  19. content — happy
  20. pass — a permit
  21. hand — help
  22. lean — thin
  23. race — the arms race
  24. content — videos and posts

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