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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 · nail · bass · shower · branch · present · hide · pitcher

  1. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  2. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  3. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  4. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  5. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  6. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  7. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  8. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  9. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  10. The ________________ went through the wall.
  11. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  12. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  13. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  14. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  15. He is an ace ________________.
  16. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  17. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  18. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  19. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  20. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  24. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. race — the arms race
  2. present — there
  3. bass — the fish
  4. present — a gift
  5. branch — a division
  6. present — the time now
  7. nail — for a hammer
  8. branch — of a tree
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. bass — the instrument
  12. nail — on a finger
  13. race — a contest
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. pitcher — in baseball
  16. shower — to wash
  17. hide — animal skin
  18. bass — low music
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. shower — rain
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. branch — of a bank
  24. race — humankind

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