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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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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: rush · coach · wave · scale · land · bank · race · content

  1. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  2. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  3. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  4. Have you met the new head ________________?
  5. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  6. That must've been a ________________.
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  11. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  14. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  15. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  18. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  19. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  22. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.

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

Answer key

  1. content — the amount
  2. wave — a sudden rise
  3. coach — pulled by horses
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. land — ground
  6. rush — a thrill
  7. race — the arms race
  8. bank — for money
  9. content — happy
  10. rush — hurry
  11. rush — to hurry
  12. race — humankind
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. wave — with your hand
  15. scale — for weighing
  16. land — to come down
  17. scale — in music
  18. wave — of the sea
  19. bank — of a river
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. bank — for money
  22. scale — size or range
  23. land — a country
  24. race — a contest

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