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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 116 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: race · staff · ground · face · nail · march · bound · chair

  1. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  2. The ________________ went through the wall.
  3. There's no middle ________________.
  4. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  5. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  6. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  7. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  8. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  9. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  10. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  13. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  14. That was ________________ to happen.
  15. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  16. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  17. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  18. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  19. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  20. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  21. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  22. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  23. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  24. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. ground — a position
  4. chair — to sit on
  5. staff — a stick
  6. race — a contest
  7. nail — for a hammer
  8. race — humankind
  9. face — to confront
  10. staff — employees
  11. march — the month
  12. ground — crushed
  13. march — the month
  14. bound — certain
  15. face — part of the head
  16. nail — on a finger
  17. chair — a leader
  18. face — to point toward
  19. march — music
  20. race — the arms race
  21. chair — a professorship
  22. ground — the earth
  23. bound — obliged
  24. bound — tied together

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