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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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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: pound · race · wake · fan · rest · lie · coach · snap

  1. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  2. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  3. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  4. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  5. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  6. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  7. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  8. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  9. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  10. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  11. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  12. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  15. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  16. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  17. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  18. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  19. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  20. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  21. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  22. Have you met the new head ________________?
  23. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  24. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — to cool the air
  2. lie — an untruth
  3. pound — for dogs
  4. coach — pulled by horses
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. rest — what's left
  7. wake — before a funeral
  8. race — a contest
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. rest — a break
  12. snap — to speak sharply
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. pound — a weight
  15. wake — a trail
  16. wake — to stop sleeping
  17. race — humankind
  18. lie — to recline
  19. race — the arms race
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. rest — what's left
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. snap — to click
  24. pound — to hit hard

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