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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: march · wound · press · suit · cabinet · race · rush · pitcher

  1. He is an ace ________________.
  2. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  5. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  6. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. That must've been a ________________.
  9. Did you ________________ the button?
  10. What do you think of the new ________________?
  11. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  12. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  13. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  14. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  15. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  19. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  20. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  21. When will it ________________ you to start?
  22. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  23. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  24. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — in baseball
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. march — music
  4. suit — in cards
  5. wound — an injury
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. wound — an injury
  8. rush — a thrill
  9. press — to push
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. press — a publisher
  12. rush — to hurry
  13. wound — past of 'wind'
  14. rush — hurry
  15. cabinet — a cupboard
  16. race — a contest
  17. race — the arms race
  18. march — the month
  19. suit — clothes
  20. march — the month
  21. suit — to fit
  22. press — newspapers
  23. race — humankind
  24. cabinet — ministers

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