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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: rule · tear · ground · race · hand · file · plane · can

  1. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  2. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  4. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  5. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  6. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  10. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  11. The ________________ took off on time.
  12. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  13. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  14. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  17. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  18. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  19. There's no middle ________________.
  20. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  21. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  22. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  23. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  24. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. tear — from crying
  3. plane — in geometry
  4. can — a tin
  5. race — a contest
  6. hand — in cards
  7. tear — to rip
  8. tear — from crying
  9. race — the arms race
  10. ground — the earth
  11. plane — an aircraft
  12. rule — government
  13. hand — help
  14. race — humankind
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. file — a tool
  17. can — a tin
  18. plane — a tool
  19. ground — a position
  20. rule — a law
  21. file — a document
  22. can — to be able to
  23. file — a line of people
  24. rule — to rule out

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