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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  2. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  3. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  4. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  7. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  8. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  9. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  13. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  14. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  15. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  16. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  17. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  18. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  19. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  20. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  21. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  24. She got the top ________________ in the exam.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for golf
  2. mark — a trace
  3. club — for dancing
  4. drill — army training
  5. last — final
  6. race — a contest
  7. drill — a practice
  8. fine — a penalty
  9. game — wild animals
  10. game — a match
  11. last — to go on
  12. fine — high quality
  13. branch — of a tree
  14. fine — all right
  15. mark — to pay attention
  16. race — the arms race
  17. branch — a division
  18. branch — of a bank
  19. game — a kind of play
  20. club — a group
  21. drill — the tool
  22. last — finally
  23. race — humankind
  24. mark — a grade

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