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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: cabinet · nail · ball · wound · branch · tear · race · date

  1. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  2. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  3. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  4. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  5. The ________________ went through the wall.
  6. Have you settled on a ________________?
  7. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  8. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  9. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  10. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  11. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  12. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  13. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  14. The King held a masked ________________.
  15. What do you think of the new ________________?
  16. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  20. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  21. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  22. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  23. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  24. The kitten curled into a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. race — the arms race
  3. wound — past of 'wind'
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. branch — of a bank
  8. ball — a great time
  9. branch — of a tree
  10. cabinet — a cupboard
  11. wound — an injury
  12. tear — from crying
  13. date — the fruit
  14. ball — a dance
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. nail — for a hammer
  17. wound — an injury
  18. tear — from crying
  19. branch — a division
  20. nail — on a finger
  21. race — a contest
  22. tear — to rip
  23. race — humankind
  24. ball — a round shape

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