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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: wind · face · coach · mine · race · ruler · mouse · fan

  1. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  2. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  3. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  6. Have you met the new head ________________?
  7. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  10. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  11. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  12. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  13. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  14. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  15. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  16. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  19. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  20. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  21. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  22. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  23. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  24. The people resisted their cruel ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. race — a contest
  2. mouse — the animal
  3. face — to confront
  4. wind — moving air
  5. mouse — for a computer
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. fan — to cool the air
  8. wind — moving air
  9. coach — pulled by horses
  10. mouse — the animal
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. mine — belonging to me
  13. race — humankind
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. wind — to turn a key
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. mine — for digging
  18. race — the arms race
  19. face — to point toward
  20. face — part of the head
  21. ruler — for measuring
  22. ruler — for measuring
  23. mine — an explosive
  24. ruler — a monarch

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