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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: rest · ground · club · object · bound · race · degree · coach

  1. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  2. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  5. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  6. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  7. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  8. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  9. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  10. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  11. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  14. There's no middle ________________.
  15. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  16. Have you met the new head ________________?
  17. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  18. That was ________________ to happen.
  19. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  20. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  23. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  24. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for dancing
  2. race — a contest
  3. degree — from a university
  4. club — for golf
  5. ground — crushed
  6. club — a group
  7. bound — obliged
  8. object — a thing
  9. bound — tied together
  10. race — the arms race
  11. coach — pulled by horses
  12. degree — an amount
  13. ground — the earth
  14. ground — a position
  15. rest — what's left
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. race — humankind
  18. bound — certain
  19. rest — a break
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. degree — temperature
  22. object — an aim
  23. object — to protest
  24. rest — what's left

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