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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: race · bound · fall · mine · rock · file · rush · jam

  1. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  2. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  3. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  4. That was ________________ to happen.
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  7. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  8. That must've been a ________________.
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  11. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  12. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  13. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  18. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  19. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  20. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  21. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  22. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  23. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  24. You shouldn't ________________ things.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — tied together
  2. fall — the season
  3. rock — music
  4. bound — certain
  5. mine — for digging
  6. bound — obliged
  7. race — a contest
  8. rush — a thrill
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. race — the arms race
  11. rock — a stone
  12. fall — to drop
  13. rush — hurry
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. rock — to move gently
  16. file — a line of people
  17. jam — in traffic
  18. fall — to drop
  19. file — a document
  20. file — a tool
  21. race — humankind
  22. jam — to spread on bread
  23. jam — a tight spot
  24. rush — to hurry

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