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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. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  2. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  3. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  4. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  5. The ________________ market has crashed.
  6. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  10. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  11. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  12. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  13. The ball is in your ________________.
  14. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  15. My father caught me by the ________________.
  16. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  17. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  18. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  21. That must've been a ________________.
  22. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  23. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  24. A black ________________ roamed the forest.

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

Answer key

  1. race — a contest
  2. rush — hurry
  3. trunk — of a car
  4. trunk — of an elephant
  5. stock — shares
  6. rush — to hurry
  7. race — the arms race
  8. march — the month
  9. court — of law
  10. stock — a soup base
  11. stock — goods
  12. trunk — of a tree
  13. court — for sport
  14. arm — a part of something
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. bear — the animal
  17. race — humankind
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. court — of a king
  20. march — music
  21. rush — a thrill
  22. march — the month
  23. bear — to put up with
  24. bear — the animal

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