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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: bay · race · branch · rush · pitcher · deal · mine · bat

  1. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  2. My mare is ________________ in color.
  3. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  4. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  10. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  11. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  12. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  13. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  14. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  15. He is an ace ________________.
  16. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  17. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  18. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  19. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  20. That must've been a ________________.
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  23. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  24. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. bay — a horse colour
  3. rush — to hurry
  4. deal — a big deal
  5. mine — for digging
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. branch — of a tree
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. race — humankind
  10. deal — to handle
  11. rush — hurry
  12. bat — the animal
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. deal — an agreement
  15. pitcher — in baseball
  16. race — the arms race
  17. race — a contest
  18. bay — to keep at bay
  19. branch — a division
  20. rush — a thrill
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. branch — of a bank
  23. bay — a part of the sea
  24. bat — in an idiom

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