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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: file · spell · craft · race · bat · chair · roll · rest

  1. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. We're on a ________________ here.
  3. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  4. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  7. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  10. How do you ________________ your surname?
  11. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  12. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  13. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  14. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  15. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  16. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  17. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  20. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  21. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  22. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  23. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  24. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. roll — on a roll
  3. rest — what's left
  4. race — a contest
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. chair — to sit on
  7. spell — magic
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. roll — a cake
  10. spell — letters
  11. roll — a list
  12. craft — boats
  13. file — a line of people
  14. chair — a leader
  15. rest — what's left
  16. race — the arms race
  17. spell — a short time
  18. file — a document
  19. chair — a professorship
  20. file — a tool
  21. rest — a break
  22. race — humankind
  23. craft — a handicraft
  24. craft — a skill

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