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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: wave · bowl · race · mine · bat · branch · cell · capital

  1. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  2. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  3. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  4. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  5. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  6. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  7. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  13. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  18. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  19. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  20. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  23. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  24. He was locked up in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. race — the arms race
  2. wave — of the sea
  3. branch — of a tree
  4. cell — in biology
  5. mine — an explosive
  6. branch — of a bank
  7. wave — a sudden rise
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. capital — a city
  10. race — humankind
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. bat — the animal
  13. wave — with your hand
  14. mine — for digging
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. race — a contest
  17. bowl — a football final
  18. mine — belonging to me
  19. branch — a division
  20. bowl — a dish
  21. capital — money
  22. cell — a phone
  23. bowl — to roll
  24. cell — in a prison

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