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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: mouse · march · saw · face · race · rush · band · capital

  1. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  2. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. He works in a ________________ mill.
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  6. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. She's very handy with a ________________.
  9. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  10. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  11. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  12. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  13. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  14. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  15. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  16. That must've been a ________________.
  17. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  23. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  24. Should I buy a wireless ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. race — humankind
  2. race — a contest
  3. saw — the tool
  4. march — the month
  5. band — a rubber band
  6. band — a ring
  7. march — the month
  8. saw — the tool
  9. band — a music group
  10. mouse — the animal
  11. saw — past of 'see'
  12. race — the arms race
  13. face — part of the head
  14. mouse — the animal
  15. rush — hurry
  16. rush — a thrill
  17. face — to confront
  18. march — music
  19. capital — a city
  20. capital — money
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. rush — to hurry
  23. face — to point toward
  24. mouse — for a computer

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