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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: toast · net · coach · shower · race · mug · rush · field

  1. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. That must've been a ________________.
  7. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  8. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  9. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  10. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. Where did you ________________ them?
  14. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  15. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  16. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  17. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  18. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  19. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  20. Have you met the new head ________________?
  21. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  24. The ball hit the back of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — a drink to someone
  2. shower — to wash
  3. field — for sport
  4. mug — a cup
  5. field — a subject
  6. rush — a thrill
  7. race — a contest
  8. coach — pulled by horses
  9. rush — to hurry
  10. shower — rain
  11. race — the arms race
  12. race — humankind
  13. mug — to rob
  14. net — after costs
  15. net — for catching
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. toast — bread
  18. rush — hurry
  19. toast — the most admired
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. mug — a face
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. field — farmland
  24. net — in sport

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