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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: march · club · shower · kick · track · chair

  1. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  2. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  3. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  4. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  5. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  6. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  7. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  8. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  9. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  10. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  11. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  14. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  15. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  16. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.

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

Answer key

  1. march — music
  2. chair — to sit on
  3. shower — to wash
  4. track — a song
  5. chair — a leader
  6. club — a group
  7. track — to keep track
  8. kick — in football
  9. march — the month
  10. kick — with a leg
  11. kick — a thrill
  12. march — the month
  13. chair — a professorship
  14. club — for dancing
  15. club — for golf
  16. shower — rain
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. track — a path

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