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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 120 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: bank · present · rest · pop · capital · bass · race · pitch

  1. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  2. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  3. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  4. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  5. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  6. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  9. You don't need to ________________ round.
  10. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  13. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  14. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  19. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  20. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  21. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  22. We're almost out of ________________.
  23. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  24. I play ________________ in a jazz band.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — for money
  2. present — the time now
  3. bank — of a river
  4. rest — what's left
  5. pitch — a sports field
  6. rest — what's left
  7. race — humankind
  8. pop — music
  9. pop — to visit
  10. bank — for money
  11. capital — a city
  12. race — a contest
  13. bass — the fish
  14. pitch — completely
  15. capital — money
  16. present — a gift
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. bass — low music
  19. pitch — a sales talk
  20. race — the arms race
  21. rest — a break
  22. pop — soda
  23. present — there
  24. bass — the instrument

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