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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: march · race · mate · scale · file · staff · pitcher · drill

  1. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  2. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  3. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  4. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  5. He is an ace ________________.
  6. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  7. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  10. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  11. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  12. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  13. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. Have you found your soul ________________?
  16. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  19. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  20. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  21. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  22. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  23. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  24. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — a practice
  2. file — a tool
  3. mate — a friend
  4. drill — army training
  5. pitcher — in baseball
  6. staff — employees
  7. scale — size or range
  8. march — the month
  9. staff — a stick
  10. race — the arms race
  11. staff — employees
  12. drill — the tool
  13. scale — in music
  14. march — music
  15. mate — a partner
  16. mate — to breed
  17. file — a document
  18. race — humankind
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. march — the month
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. scale — for weighing
  23. file — a line of people
  24. race — a contest

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