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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.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  2. We're almost out of ________________.
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. You don't need to ________________ round.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  7. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  10. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  11. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  12. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  13. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  14. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  19. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  20. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  21. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  22. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  23. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  24. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — army training
  2. pop — soda
  3. wind — moving air
  4. pop — to visit
  5. wind — moving air
  6. race — the arms race
  7. lean — to rest against
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. stick — to attach or keep to
  10. drill — a practice
  11. lean — thin
  12. branch — of a tree
  13. pop — music
  14. race — a contest
  15. race — humankind
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. drill — the tool
  19. capital — a city
  20. stick — a piece of wood
  21. branch — of a bank
  22. lean — to bend
  23. branch — a division
  24. capital — money

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