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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 · wax · wind · mug · rash · pitch · wake · branch

  1. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  2. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  3. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  9. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  10. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  11. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  12. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  13. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  14. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  15. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  16. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  17. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. Don't do anything ________________.
  20. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  21. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  22. Where did you ________________ them?
  23. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  24. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — completely
  2. rash — on the skin
  3. branch — of a bank
  4. wind — moving air
  5. race — humankind
  6. pitch — a sports field
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. wax — to grow
  9. rash — a series
  10. mug — a face
  11. mug — a cup
  12. pitch — a sales talk
  13. wax — in the ear
  14. wake — to stop sleeping
  15. race — the arms race
  16. wax — for sculpting
  17. branch — a division
  18. wind — moving air
  19. rash — hasty
  20. wake — before a funeral
  21. branch — of a tree
  22. mug — to rob
  23. race — a contest
  24. wake — a trail

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