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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. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  2. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  3. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  6. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  9. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  13. Have you found your soul ________________?
  14. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  15. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  19. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  20. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  21. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  24. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?

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

Answer key

  1. race — humankind
  2. current — of water
  3. mate — to breed
  4. capital — money
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. current — happening now
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. band — a rubber band
  9. lie — an untruth
  10. capital — a city
  11. spring — a coil
  12. current — electric
  13. mate — a partner
  14. race — the arms race
  15. branch — of a bank
  16. race — a contest
  17. spring — the season
  18. lie — to recline
  19. branch — a division
  20. band — a music group
  21. branch — of a tree
  22. spring — of water
  23. band — a ring
  24. mate — a friend

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