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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: race · shower · pass · cap · face · coach · chip · wind

  1. Have you met the new head ________________?
  2. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  3. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  4. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  5. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  6. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  9. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  10. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  11. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  12. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  13. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  14. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  15. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  16. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  17. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  20. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  21. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  22. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  23. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  24. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. pass — a permit
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. pass — to succeed
  5. coach — pulled by horses
  6. pass — to spend time
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. shower — rain
  9. wind — moving air
  10. race — humankind
  11. shower — a meteor shower
  12. face — to point toward
  13. shower — to wash
  14. cap — of ice
  15. race — the arms race
  16. face — to confront
  17. cap — a hat
  18. wind — moving air
  19. chip — to eat
  20. cap — a lid
  21. chip — in a computer
  22. chip — for betting
  23. face — part of the head
  24. race — a contest

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