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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 120 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: rock · race · fall · capital · present · coach

  1. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  2. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  3. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  4. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  5. Have you met the new head ________________?
  6. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  7. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  8. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  9. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  10. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  14. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  15. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  16. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. 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. fall — the season
  2. present — a gift
  3. race — humankind
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. present — the time now
  7. rock — music
  8. present — there
  9. rock — to move gently
  10. fall — to drop
  11. capital — a city
  12. capital — money
  13. fall — to drop
  14. race — a contest
  15. coach — pulled by horses
  16. rock — a stone
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. 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