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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: rest · wake · file · content · race · stock · key · mine

  1. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  2. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  3. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  4. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  5. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  6. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  7. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  8. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  9. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  10. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  11. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  12. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  13. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  14. The ________________ market has crashed.
  15. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  16. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  17. This piece is in a major ________________.
  18. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  19. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  22. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  23. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  24. What's the difference between broth and ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. wake — before a funeral
  3. rest — a break
  4. mine — belonging to me
  5. rest — what's left
  6. mine — an explosive
  7. race — a contest
  8. file — a document
  9. content — videos and posts
  10. key — the most important part
  11. content — happy
  12. wake — to stop sleeping
  13. stock — goods
  14. stock — shares
  15. mine — for digging
  16. content — the amount
  17. key — in music
  18. race — the arms race
  19. key — for a lock
  20. file — a line of people
  21. wake — a trail
  22. race — humankind
  23. file — a tool
  24. stock — a soup base

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