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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. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  2. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  3. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  4. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  5. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  6. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  7. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  8. Where did you ________________ them?
  9. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  10. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  11. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  12. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  13. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  14. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  17. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  18. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  19. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  20. Don't do anything ________________.
  21. Have you met the new head ________________?
  22. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  23. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  24. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — pulled by horses
  2. fall — the season
  3. mug — a cup
  4. rash — on the skin
  5. rash — a series
  6. mug — a face
  7. fall — to drop
  8. mug — to rob
  9. branch — of a tree
  10. branch — of a bank
  11. pitch — a sales talk
  12. mark — a trace
  13. pitch — completely
  14. race — a contest
  15. race — humankind
  16. mark — a grade
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. pitch — a sports field
  19. fall — to drop
  20. rash — hasty
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. branch — a division
  23. mark — to pay attention
  24. race — the arms race

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