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

  1. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  2. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  3. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  4. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  7. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  8. Have you found your soul ________________?
  9. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  10. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  11. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  12. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  13. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  14. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  15. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  16. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  17. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  18. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  19. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  20. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  21. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  22. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  23. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  24. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. race — humankind
  2. pound — a weight
  3. wake — to stop sleeping
  4. wake — before a funeral
  5. race — the arms race
  6. branch — of a bank
  7. race — a contest
  8. mate — a partner
  9. wake — a trail
  10. mate — to breed
  11. snap — to click
  12. band — a rubber band
  13. band — a ring
  14. pound — for dogs
  15. drill — the tool
  16. pound — to hit hard
  17. drill — army training
  18. branch — a division
  19. snap — to speak sharply
  20. mate — a friend
  21. branch — of a tree
  22. snap — to snap out of it
  23. drill — a practice
  24. band — a music group

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