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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. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  2. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  3. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  4. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  5. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  6. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  7. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  8. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  9. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  10. David sat on the ________________.
  11. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  14. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  18. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  19. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  20. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  21. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  22. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  23. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  24. The old man leaned on his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. race — a contest
  2. fall — to drop
  3. swing — in golf
  4. drill — army training
  5. drill — a practice
  6. bank — of a river
  7. branch — of a bank
  8. staff — employees
  9. race — humankind
  10. swing — to play on
  11. fall — the season
  12. march — the month
  13. branch — of a tree
  14. fall — to drop
  15. march — music
  16. march — the month
  17. bank — for money
  18. staff — employees
  19. branch — a division
  20. drill — the tool
  21. swing — music
  22. bank — for money
  23. race — the arms race
  24. staff — a stick

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