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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 · game · wound · band · jam · coach · date · pitcher

  1. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  2. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  3. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  4. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  7. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  8. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  9. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  10. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  11. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  12. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  13. Have you met the new head ________________?
  14. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  15. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  16. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  17. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  20. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  21. He is an ace ________________.
  22. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  24. Have you settled on a ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. race — the arms race
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. jam — in traffic
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. race — humankind
  6. game — wild animals
  7. coach — pulled by horses
  8. band — a music group
  9. jam — to spread on bread
  10. band — a rubber band
  11. date — the fruit
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. game — a kind of play
  15. band — a ring
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. wound — an injury
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. jam — a tight spot
  20. race — a contest
  21. pitcher — in baseball
  22. wound — an injury
  23. game — a match
  24. date — on the calendar

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