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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: object · ground · race · drill · date · coach · mate · saw

  1. She's very handy with a ________________.
  2. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  3. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  4. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  5. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  6. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  7. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  8. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  9. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  10. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  11. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  12. He works in a ________________ mill.
  13. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  14. Have you settled on a ________________?
  15. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  16. Have you met the new head ________________?
  17. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  18. There's no middle ________________.
  19. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  20. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  21. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  22. Have you found your soul ________________?
  23. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  24. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. object — an aim
  3. mate — a friend
  4. object — to protest
  5. coach — pulled by horses
  6. ground — the earth
  7. ground — crushed
  8. saw — past of 'see'
  9. race — the arms race
  10. mate — to breed
  11. drill — army training
  12. saw — the tool
  13. drill — the tool
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. drill — a practice
  18. ground — a position
  19. race — a contest
  20. object — a thing
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. mate — a partner
  23. race — humankind
  24. date — the fruit

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