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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 · foot · row · file · tear · race · pop · bound

  1. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  2. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  5. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  6. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  9. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  10. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  11. That was ________________ to happen.
  12. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. You don't need to ________________ round.
  15. We're almost out of ________________.
  16. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  17. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  18. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  21. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  22. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  23. Have you met the new head ________________?
  24. I had a ________________ with my boss today.

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

Answer key

  1. race — humankind
  2. bound — tied together
  3. tear — from crying
  4. foot — a measure
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. file — a line of people
  7. tear — to rip
  8. bound — obliged
  9. pop — music
  10. coach — pulled by horses
  11. bound — certain
  12. foot — part of the body
  13. file — a document
  14. pop — to visit
  15. pop — soda
  16. foot — the bottom
  17. race — a contest
  18. row — to paddle
  19. tear — from crying
  20. race — the arms race
  21. row — a line
  22. file — a tool
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. row — a quarrel

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