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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. Have you met the new head ________________?
  2. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  3. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  4. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  5. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  6. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  7. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  10. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  11. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  12. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  13. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  14. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  15. Have you found your soul ________________?
  16. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  17. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  18. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  22. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  23. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  24. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. branch — of a bank
  3. coach — pulled by horses
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. bore — to drill
  6. race — a contest
  7. bore — gave birth
  8. hand — in cards
  9. face — part of the head
  10. branch — a division
  11. mate — a friend
  12. face — to point toward
  13. mate — to breed
  14. bore — to tire
  15. mate — a partner
  16. face — to confront
  17. field — farmland
  18. race — the arms race
  19. field — for sport
  20. field — a subject
  21. branch — of a tree
  22. hand — help
  23. race — humankind
  24. hand — part of the body

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