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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: key · safe · file · rest · race · drill · arm · pound

  1. My father caught me by the ________________.
  2. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  3. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  4. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  5. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  6. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  9. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  10. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  11. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  12. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  13. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  14. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  15. This piece is in a major ________________.
  16. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  17. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  20. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  21. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  22. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  23. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  24. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. pound — to hit hard
  3. rest — a break
  4. race — a contest
  5. safe — out of danger
  6. drill — army training
  7. race — the arms race
  8. arm — a part of something
  9. rest — what's left
  10. safe — out of danger
  11. key — for a lock
  12. drill — a practice
  13. rest — what's left
  14. pound — a weight
  15. key — in music
  16. race — humankind
  17. file — a line of people
  18. file — a document
  19. arm — part of the body
  20. key — the most important part
  21. pound — for dogs
  22. safe — a strongbox
  23. drill — the tool
  24. file — a tool

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