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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: racket · bat · cold · craft · club · stand

  1. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  2. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  3. I can't ________________ this cold.
  4. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  5. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  8. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  9. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  12. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  13. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  14. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  18. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — on your feet
  2. club — for golf
  3. stand — to bear
  4. club — a group
  5. craft — boats
  6. cold — an illness
  7. bat — in an idiom
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. cold — the Cold War
  10. bat — the animal
  11. stand — for spectators
  12. craft — a handicraft
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. club — for dancing
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. cold — not warm
  17. racket — a loud noise
  18. craft — a skill

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