One word many meanings list - Word и Excel - помощь в работе с программами

Many English words have multiple meanings. This means that the same word, with the same spelling and pronunciation may have more than one meaning. Sometimes the meanings may be very different. This can be confusing for people learning English. You may wonder,” How do I know what the meaning is?” The best way is rely on context, illustrations, or diagrams in the text. However, if you still are not sure of the meaning, look it up. A dictionary will tell you all the meanings of any word. This posting cannot discuss every word with multiple meanings. There are simply too many of them. In this posting, however, I talk about 25 common words with multiple meanings. These are word you may see and hear in your daily life. I show you parts of speech, definitions, and example sentences for each meaning of each word.The download at the end will give you additional practice understanding words with multiple meanings.

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Below is a list of common words with multiple meanings.

B

bank

2. bark

3. bill

4. break

5. bug

C

6. charge

7. company

8. current

D-H

9. date

10. fair

11. fast

12. fly

13. hit

J-N

14. jam

15. left

16. mine

17. nail

P-R

18. patient

19. pool

20. pupil

21. run

S-T

22. season

23. set

24. take

25. turn

You now know many common English words with multiple meanings. Often you can guess the meaning of the word through context. If that is not helpful, however, don’t hesitate to look the word up. The download will give you additional practice understanding words with multiple meanings.

You can download the practice sheet NOW!

Idioms of the day

no picnic–This means something is difficult and not pleasant. I’m glad I moved, but making all the preparations was no picnic.
turn a blind eye to–This means to not notice a very obvious problem. Her husband comes home drunk every night, but she turns a blind eye to his problems. She insists that he’s not an alcoholic.

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CAMBRIDGE
ENGLISH VOCABULARY IN USE ADVANCED

UNIT 91

One word, many meanings

Polysemy

A
great many words in English have more than one meaning. Linguists call this
aspect of vocabulary polysemy.

Look
at these sentences and think about how you would translate the words in
italics into your own language.

fair	It’s only fair that we should share the housework. The Frankfurt Book Fair is a very important event for most publishers. The forecast is for the weather to stay fair for the next week. *I’ve got fair* skin and burn easily in the sun. His marks in his final exams ranged from excellent to fair.**
flat	The firefighters managed to save the children from the burning third-floor flat. The countryside round here is terribly flat and boring. To join the Fitness Club, you pay a flat fee of £500. The sonata is in B flat minor. She finished the exercise in five minutes flat.
capital	Fill in the form in capital letters. Wellington is the capital of New Zealand. You need plenty of capital to open a restaurant. Capital punishment has been abolished in many countries.
mean	What does ‘coagulate’ mean? I didn’t mean to hurt you. He’s far too mean to buy her flowers. The mean temperature for July is 25oC. You shouldn’t be so mean to your little sister.

You
probably need a different word to translate fair, flat, capital
and mean in each sentence. Sometimes the meanings are clearly
related – flat as in countryside has a connection with flat as
in apartment in that they both include an idea of being on one level. Sometimes,
however, there is no connection at all. For example, the meaning of fair as
in Book Fair has no obvious connection with any of the other meanings
of fair. Words like this can be called homographs (words with
the same spellings but different meanings).

Being aware of polysemy

It
is useful to be aware of polysemy in English for several reasons.

•
You need to remember that the meaning you first learnt for a word may not be
the one that it has in a new context.

•
You need to be aware that in English, words can sometimes be used as
different parts of speech. Flat with its apartment
meaning, for instance, can become an adjective, e.g. a set of flat keys.

•
Learning about the range of meanings that a word can have can help you to
learn several meanings for the price of one.

•
It will also help you to understand jokes in English, as these are often
based on polysemous words.

Language
help

The
context of a word with multiple meanings will usually make it absolutely
clear which of the word’s possible meanings is intended. So you can
understand what, for example, the noun drill
probably means in (a) a dental context, (b) an army context, (c) a
road-building context, or (d) a languagelearning context.

EXERCISES

91.1

Find
the example sentence in A opposite in which fair, flat, capital or mean has
the following meaning.

1
intend

2
exactly

3
proper, just

4
city with the seat of government

5
light in colour

6
unkind

7
fixed

8
neither very good nor very bad

9
money

10
unwilling to spend money

91.2

What
part of speech is the italicised word in each of the example sentences in A?

Write
a synonym or explanation for each of the examples not used in 91.1.

91.3

Here
are some more examples of polysemous words in English. Which word can fill
all the gaps in each group of sentences?

1
He struck a ____________ and we slowly began to look around the dark cave.

The
teenage cooks in the competition were a ____________ for any of the adults.

Their
marriage has been called a ____________ made in heaven.

2
That bird has an unusually long ____________.

Don’t
forget to keep the receipt when you pay your hotel ____________.

Parliament
is currently discussing a ____________ proposing changes to copyright
legislation.

3
Hannah gave us a lovely ____________ of glasses as a wedding present.

Let’s
now try and ____________ a date for our meeting next week.

My
father has very ____________ opinions about how people should behave.

4
I’ve applied for a ____________ in our company’s Paris office.

The
end of the race is indicated by a ____________ with a flag on it.

Why
not ____________ your query on an online forum? You’re bound to get a quick
response.

5
I didn’t get my assignment back because the teacher hadn’t had time to ____________
it.

Sales
have already passed the million ____________.

You’ve
got a red ____________ on your cheek. It looks like lipstick.

6
You need to be a special kind of person to ____________ a successful
business.

Do
you fancy going for a ____________ this evening?

Thanks
to the hot weather, our shop has had a ____________ on ice cream.

91.4

Look
at the Language help box. What does drill
mean in each of the four contexts suggested?

91.5

What
would the given word be most likely to mean in each of the contexts
suggested? Use a dictionary if necessary.

1	register:	a	a primary school	b	a post office
2	interest:	a	people planning a festival	b	a bank
3	dice:	a	a kitchen	b	people playing a board game
4	service:	a	people playing tennis	b	in a restaurant
5	case:	a	in a lawyer’s office	b	at an airport
6	cue:	a	people playing snooker	b	in the theatre

91.6

Explain
these one-line jokes. They are all based on polysemy.

1
I wondered why the tennis ball was getting bigger. Then it hit me!

2
Smaller babies may be delivered by a stork but the heavier ones need a
crane.

3
Time flies like an arrow. Fruit flies like a banana.

4
You know prices are rising when you buy a winter jacket and even down is
up.

ANSWER KEY

91.1

1
intend: I didn’t mean to hurt you.
2 exactly: She finished the exercise in five minutes flat.
3 proper, just: It’s only fair that we should share the housework.
4 city with the seat of government: Wellington is the capital of New
Zealand.
5 light in colour: I’ve got fair hair and burn easily in the sun.
6 unkind: You shouldn’t be so mean to your little sister.
7 fixed: To join the Fitness Club you pay a flat fee of £500.
8 neither very good nor very bad: His marks in his final exams ranged from
excellent to fair.
9 money: You need plenty of capital to open a restaurant.
10 unwilling to spend money: He’s far too mean to buy her flowers.

91.2

It’s
only fair: adjective (right)
The Frankfurt Book Fair: noun (large show)
the weather to stay fair: adjective (pleasant)
I’ve got fair skin: adjective (light)
ranged from excellent to fair: adjective (satisfactory)
the burning third-floor flat: noun (apartment)
terribly flat and boring: adjective (level)
a flat fee of £500: adjective (fixed)
B flat minor: noun (♭ =
a note that is a semitone lower than B itself)

in
five minutes flat: adverb (only; emphasises how quick a time is)
in capital letters: adjective (upper case)
the capital of New Zealand: noun (city where the country’s government
sits)
capital to open a restaurant: noun (money)
Capital punishment: adjective (punishable by death)
‘coagulate’ mean: verb (convey a meaning, express an idea)
mean to hurt you: verb (intend)
too mean to buy her flowers: adjective (opposite of generous)
be so mean: adjective (unkind)

91.3

1
match 4 post

2
bill 5 mark

3
set 6 run

91.4

a
an instrument a dentist uses to make holes in your teeth

b
training for marching

c
a powerful tool used for making holes in a road

d
an exercise practising grammar in a fairly mechanical way

91.5

1
a the list on which students are marked present or absent every day
b to send a letter or parcel in a special way so it has protection against
being lost
2 a how much performers might appeal to the public
b money earned on an investment or paid for a loan
3 a to cut up into small cubes (usually vegetables)
b a cube with a number from one to six on each side
4 a throwing the ball into the air and hitting it at the start of a turn
b the attention given to customers by staff
5 a specific problem being dealt with by lawyers
b a piece of luggage
6 a the long stick that players use in snooker or billiards
b the words or actions that tell an actor that it is his or her turn to speak

91.6

1
Then it hit me! This means ‘then I suddenly understood and then the ball
suddenly struck my body.’
2 This is based on the traditional saying that babies are delivered to a home
by a big bird called a
stork. A crane is another kind of large bird rather like a stork. But a crane
can also be a piece of
heavy machinery used to lift heavy objects.
3 In the first sentence, flies is a verb and like is a
preposition – the sentence is comparing the flight
of time with that of an arrow. In the second sentence, flies is a noun
and like is a verb and the
sentence says that fruit flies [very small insects] enjoy bananas.
4 As well as being a preposition, down is the word for very soft
feathers used to stuff, for example,
pillows or winter jackets. If prices are up, they have risen and if
they are down they have fallen.

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Пришло время обратить внимание на некоторые простые общеизвестные слова, имеющие много разных значений. (О словах round и mean мы уже писали). Возьмем, к примеру, слово “run”, известное всем как «бежать, бегать» — у него около 179 значений, а у слова “take” — 127 значений! Мы решили рассмотреть некоторые самые необходимые значения таких слов, которые могут быть разными частями речи, например, одно и то же слово, не изменяя своей формы, может быть существительным, глаголом, прилагательным и наречием, а также принимать участие в идиомах и фразах.

1. RUN

В качестве глагола:

- My cat loves to run after rats (бегать) – моя кошка любит бегать за крысами
- My sister runs a law firm (руководить) – моя сестра руководит юридической фирмой
- Our company runs car-washing service (предлагать услуги) – наша компания предлагает услуги по мойке машин
- If you run this computer program you will protect your computer against viruses. (загрузить/установить программу) – если вы загрузите эту компьютерную программу вы защитите ваш компьютер против вирусов.

В качестве существительного

We go for a run every morning. (пробежка) – мы ходим на пробежку каждое утро
Our play will have a short run in this city. (период времени) – наша пьеса будет недолго идти в этом городе
The bus makes a regular run to the country (маршрут) – автобус совершает регулярные рейсы в деревню

2. TAKE

В качестве глагола

- Take this cake for your sister (брать) – возьми это пирожное для своей сестры
- I took a deep breath / Children took a sip of their juice / she took a look at the people before her (выполнить какое-то действие) – я глубоко вздохнул / дети отхлебнули свой сок/ она посмотрела на людей перед собой.
- If you want to be successful you should take a course of study at college (учиться) — Если ты хочешь добиться успеха в жизни,тебе следует отучиться в колледже

Глагольные конструкции

That’s my final offer. Take it or leave it. — Это мое последнее предложение. Или соглашайся, или гуд-бай. (отсутствие выбора)
It takes all sorts (to make the world) — Всякие люди бывают / человек человеку рознь
Take it from me, this story is interesting – можете мне поверить, эта история интересная (используется для усиления того, что мы говорим)

3. TURN

В качестве глагола

The child turned around saw his mother (изменить положениее) – ребенок оглянулся и увидел свою мать
Turn left than right (изменить направление) – поверните налево, затем направо
Now turn the page and find exercise 5 (перевернуть страницу) – сейчас переверните страницу и найдите упражнение 5
From a student she turned a teacher (стать другим) – из студентки она стала учителем
As winter came it turned cold ( измениться — о погоде) – пришла зима и стало холодно

В качестве существительного

It is your turn to speak (очередь) – ваша очередь говорить
Our meeting took an unexpected turn (изменение ситуации) – наша встреча приняла неожиданный поворот
Be careful when driving and take a right turn (изменение направления) – будьте осторожны при вождении и поверните в нужном месте

Глагольные конструкции

She cuts costs at every turn – она постоянно экономит деньги
I made him a good turn by inviting to participate in my project – я оказал ему хорошую услугу, пригласив принять участие в своем проекте.
He made me a bad turn by introducing to that terrible person – он оказал мне плохую услугу, познакомив с этим ужасным человеком.
Why does this woman always speak out of turn? – почему эта женщина всегда всех перебивает (говорит вне очереди)?
We were happy to live at the turn of the century – нам посчастливилось жить на рубеже двух столетий

Таких слов с множеством значений в английском языке много. С некоторыми из них мы вас познакомим в одной из следующих статей. Следите за обновлениями!

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Polysemous English words — Wall Street English. There are many English words that are pronounced and spelled exactly the same, but have completely different meanings. … But you get a double benefit, as marketers would say: several new English words at once to replenish the vocabulary for the price of one.
According to the Guinness Book of Records, the English word with the most meanings is set. It has 430 values. Here we will look at common examples of the meanings of ambiguous English words.

What words in English have multiple meanings?

And in order to read articles in English on your own and not feel discomfort, come to study at Skyeng.

Run: 645 values …
Set: 430 values …
Go: 368 values …
Take: 343 values …
Stand: 334 values …
Get: 289 values …
Turn: 288 values …
Put: 268 values

Why does one word have many meanings in English?

The English language is notable for the fact that a large number of words are polysemous. The linguistic name for this phenomenon is ‘polysemy’: from the Greek words ‘poly’ — ‘many’ and ‘sema’ — ‘meaning’. This very polysemy leads to our mistakes, misunderstanding and misinterpretation. … Their different meanings do not surprise us at all.

What’s the longest word in the English language?

The longest word found in the main dictionaries of the English language is pneumonoultramicroscopicsilicovolcanoconiosis, which means lung disease from the inhalation of very small silica particles of volcanic ash; from a medical point of view, the disease is similar to that of silicosis.

What are unambiguous example words?

In modern Russian, there are words that have the same lexical meaning: bandage, appendicitis, birch, felt-tip pen, satin, etc. Such words are called unambiguous or monosemantic (gr.

What word in Russian has the most meanings?

Polysemous words can be among words belonging to any part of speech, except for numbers. Most polysemous words are observed among verbs. The word «go» can be called «champion» in terms of ambiguity. It has more than 40 meanings, and the verb «pull» has more than 20.

How to determine the meaning of a polysemantic word?

A word that has several lexical meanings is polysemantic. One meaning is direct, the rest are portable. A striking example of a polysemantic word is a key (spanner, treble, spring, key from the lock). Any independent part of speech can be polysemantic: a noun, an adjective, a verb, etc.

What are words with two meanings called?

Words that have two or more meanings are called polysemous. Words that answer the same question and have a similar meaning are called synonyms. Words that answer the same question, but have the opposite meaning, are called antonyms.

What are grade 2 polysemous words?

Polysemous words are words that have two or more lexical meanings. Explanatory dictionary — a dictionary that provides an explanation of the lexical meaning of a word.

Why are there so many synonyms in English?

It’s one thing when synonyms convey the subtlest shades of moods, qualities, intentions. … Third, you can practice your English listening skills once again — a little exercise for those seeking to improve their skills.

How many English languages?

Living languages

Language	A type
English	West Germanic languages
Welsh	Celtic languages (British languages)
Scottish (Germanic)	West Germanic languages
Irish	Celtic languages (Goidel languages)

What words refer to Homonyms?

Homonyms are words that match in sound and spelling, but have different meanings:

glasses in a beautiful frame;
score points in the game.

How many letters are there in the largest English word?

The longest words in English The longest word that can be found in the English dictionary contains 45 letters and calls the disease silicosis: Pneumonoultramicroscopicsilicovolcanoconiosis.

What does the word tetrahydropyranylcyclopentyltetrahydropyridopyridine mean?

Tetrahydropyranylcyclopentyltetrahydropyridopyridine is a 55-letter word describing a substance according to the patent of the Russian Federation No. 2285004. The word denoting age includes a numeral, spelled together, and the basis «-years».

What does the longest word in the world look like?

In the Guinness Book of Records, the 1993 edition, the word «X-ray electrocardiographic» was named the longest. It consists of 33 letters. In 2003, the word changed — «high-level discerning.» There are already 35 letters in it.

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