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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 120 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: rush · wave · saw · race · band · firm · press · bat

  1. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  2. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  3. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  4. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  5. Did you ________________ the button?
  6. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  7. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. She's very handy with a ________________.
  10. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  11. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  12. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. He works in a ________________ mill.
  15. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  16. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  17. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  18. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  19. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  20. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  23. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  24. That must've been a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. race — the arms race
  2. rush — hurry
  3. race — humankind
  4. firm — a company
  5. press — to push
  6. wave — with your hand
  7. band — a music group
  8. bat — the animal
  9. saw — the tool
  10. rush — to hurry
  11. band — a rubber band
  12. saw — past of 'see'
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. saw — the tool
  15. wave — a sudden rise
  16. press — a publisher
  17. press — newspapers
  18. firm — decided
  19. band — a ring
  20. race — a contest
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. firm — steady
  23. wave — of the sea
  24. rush — a thrill

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