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

  1. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  2. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  6. Have you met the new head ________________?
  7. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  8. The ball is in your ________________.
  9. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  10. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  11. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  15. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  18. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  21. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  22. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  23. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  24. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — a thrill
  2. hand — in cards
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. march — the month
  5. march — the month
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. race — a contest
  8. court — for sport
  9. court — of law
  10. kick — in football
  11. kick — with a leg
  12. race — humankind
  13. march — music
  14. coach — pulled by horses
  15. branch — a division
  16. hand — help
  17. bowl — to roll
  18. branch — of a bank
  19. court — of a king
  20. race — the arms race
  21. bowl — a football final
  22. bowl — a dish
  23. branch — of a tree
  24. hand — part of the body

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