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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: race · foot · bark · coach · capital · deal

  1. Have you met the new head ________________?
  2. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  7. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  8. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  9. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  10. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  11. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  12. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  13. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  14. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  17. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  18. I have a corn on my right ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. deal — an agreement
  3. capital — money
  4. bark — of a tree
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. bark — a dog's sound
  8. deal — a big deal
  9. deal — to handle
  10. race — the arms race
  11. race — a contest
  12. foot — the bottom
  13. foot — a measure
  14. race — humankind
  15. capital — a city
  16. coach — pulled by horses
  17. bark — to shout
  18. foot — 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