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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: coach · land · march · straw · patient · arm · toast · race

  1. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. When are we going to ________________?
  4. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  5. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  6. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  7. Have you met the new head ________________?
  8. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  9. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  10. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  11. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  14. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  17. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  18. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  19. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  20. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  21. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  22. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  23. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  24. My father caught me by the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — to clutch at straws
  2. march — the month
  3. land — to come down
  4. arm — a part of something
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. race — the arms race
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. toast — bread
  9. land — a country
  10. land — ground
  11. race — a contest
  12. race — humankind
  13. arm — part of the body
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. march — music
  16. toast — a drink to someone
  17. coach — pulled by horses
  18. patient — calm and waiting
  19. straw — a straw man
  20. straw — dry grass
  21. toast — the most admired
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. march — the month
  24. arm — part of the body

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