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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: last · season · race · roll · snap · bound · file · charge

  1. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  3. The tickets are free of ________________.
  4. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  5. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  6. That was ________________ to happen.
  7. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  8. Did you ________________ the meat?
  9. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  10. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  11. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  12. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  13. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  16. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  17. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  19. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  20. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  23. We're on a ________________ here.
  24. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. snap — to speak sharply
  3. charge — a price
  4. roll — a list
  5. charge — in control
  6. bound — certain
  7. snap — to click
  8. season — to add flavour
  9. snap — to snap out of it
  10. season — of the year
  11. bound — tied together
  12. race — the arms race
  13. file — a line of people
  14. file — a document
  15. bound — obliged
  16. season — in sport
  17. race — humankind
  18. last — finally
  19. roll — a cake
  20. charge — electricity
  21. last — to go on
  22. file — a tool
  23. roll — on a roll
  24. race — a contest

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