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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
468
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: pit · land · file · game · race · press · ground · hide

  1. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  2. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. When are we going to ________________?
  4. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  5. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  6. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  7. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  8. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  9. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  10. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  11. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  12. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  13. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  14. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  15. There's no middle ________________.
  16. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  17. That was a fun ________________.
  18. Did you ________________ the button?
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  21. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  22. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  23. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  24. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?

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

Answer key

  1. race — humankind
  2. race — a contest
  3. land — to come down
  4. file — a line of people
  5. pit — a hole
  6. file — a document
  7. pit — a fruit stone
  8. land — a country
  9. race — the arms race
  10. hide — animal skin
  11. file — a tool
  12. game — wild animals
  13. pit — in a race
  14. press — a publisher
  15. ground — a position
  16. ground — crushed
  17. game — a match
  18. press — to push
  19. land — ground
  20. ground — the earth
  21. game — a kind of play
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. press — newspapers
  24. hide — to keep secret

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