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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. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  2. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. David sat on the ________________.
  9. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  10. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  13. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  14. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  15. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  16. The ball is in your ________________.
  17. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  18. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  19. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  20. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  23. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  24. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. branch — of a bank
  3. wind — moving air
  4. bore — gave birth
  5. court — of a king
  6. race — humankind
  7. race — the arms race
  8. swing — to play on
  9. branch — of a tree
  10. bore — to tire
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. bore — to drill
  13. pass — to succeed
  14. pass — to spend time
  15. drill — a practice
  16. court — for sport
  17. branch — a division
  18. pass — a permit
  19. drill — the tool
  20. swing — in golf
  21. court — of law
  22. drill — army training
  23. race — a contest
  24. swing — music

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