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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 116 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 · stand · field · coach · capital · wake · ball · branch

  1. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  3. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  4. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  5. The King held a masked ________________.
  6. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  7. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  8. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  9. I can't ________________ this cold.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  15. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  16. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  17. Have you met the new head ________________?
  18. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  19. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  22. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  23. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. stand — on your feet
  3. branch — of a tree
  4. coach — pulled by horses
  5. ball — a dance
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. wake — before a funeral
  8. ball — a great time
  9. stand — to bear
  10. field — for sport
  11. race — a contest
  12. field — farmland
  13. capital — a city
  14. branch — a division
  15. ball — a round shape
  16. stand — for spectators
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. race — the arms race
  19. wake — to stop sleeping
  20. capital — money
  21. wake — a trail
  22. branch — of a bank
  23. race — humankind
  24. field — a subject

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