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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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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: present · bass · arm · row · race · pound · coach · degree

  1. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  2. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  5. My father caught me by the ________________.
  6. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  7. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  10. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  11. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  12. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  13. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  14. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  15. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  16. Have you met the new head ________________?
  17. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  21. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  24. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. present — there
  2. bass — the fish
  3. row — a line
  4. race — humankind
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. row — a quarrel
  7. row — to paddle
  8. degree — temperature
  9. bass — low music
  10. pound — for dogs
  11. arm — part of the body
  12. arm — a part of something
  13. pound — to hit hard
  14. coach — pulled by horses
  15. bass — the instrument
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. race — a contest
  19. degree — from a university
  20. present — the time now
  21. pound — a weight
  22. degree — an amount
  23. present — a gift
  24. race — the arms race

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