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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 116 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. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  2. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  8. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  9. My mare is ________________ in color.
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  12. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  13. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  14. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  15. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  16. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  17. What do you think of the new ________________?
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. Have you met the new head ________________?
  20. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  21. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  22. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  23. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  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. cabinet — ministers
  2. band — a ring
  3. wound — an injury
  4. degree — from a university
  5. wound — past of 'wind'
  6. chair — a leader
  7. bay — to keep at bay
  8. race — a contest
  9. bay — a horse colour
  10. degree — temperature
  11. wound — an injury
  12. coach — pulled by horses
  13. band — a music group
  14. cabinet — a cupboard
  15. bay — a part of the sea
  16. race — the arms race
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. degree — an amount
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. chair — a professorship
  21. chair — to sit on
  22. band — a rubber band
  23. coach — a trainer
  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