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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 120 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: hand · mate · arm · rule · race · hide · face · file

  1. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  2. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  3. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  4. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  5. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  6. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  7. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  8. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  9. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  10. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  11. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  12. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  13. My father caught me by the ________________.
  14. Have you found your soul ________________?
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  19. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  20. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  21. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  22. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  23. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  24. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a friend
  2. face — part of the head
  3. race — humankind
  4. rule — government
  5. file — a tool
  6. rule — to rule out
  7. rule — a law
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. hand — help
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. mate — to breed
  12. race — a contest
  13. arm — part of the body
  14. mate — a partner
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. file — a document
  17. race — the arms race
  18. hide — animal skin
  19. file — a line of people
  20. arm — a part of something
  21. face — to point toward
  22. face — to confront
  23. hand — in cards
  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