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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: bay · race · kid · file · roll · fork · rock · lie

  1. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  2. My mare is ________________ in color.
  3. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  4. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  5. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  6. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  7. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  8. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  9. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  10. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  11. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  14. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  15. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  16. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  17. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  18. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  19. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  20. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  21. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  22. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  23. We're on a ________________ here.
  24. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. bay — a horse colour
  3. file — a tool
  4. rock — a stone
  5. roll — a cake
  6. rock — music
  7. lie — to recline
  8. file — a line of people
  9. lie — an untruth
  10. fork — in a road
  11. kid — child
  12. kid — to tease
  13. race — the arms race
  14. roll — a list
  15. file — a document
  16. bay — to keep at bay
  17. lie — an untruth
  18. fork — to eat with
  19. bay — a part of the sea
  20. race — a contest
  21. rock — to move gently
  22. fork — a garden tool
  23. roll — on a roll
  24. race — humankind

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