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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: mate · race · craft · bat · march · rule

  1. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  2. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  3. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  4. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  7. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  8. Have you found your soul ________________?
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  13. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  14. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — a skill
  2. rule — government
  3. mate — a friend
  4. rule — to rule out
  5. march — the month
  6. race — the arms race
  7. rule — a law
  8. mate — a partner
  9. march — the month
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. bat — the animal
  12. march — music
  13. craft — boats
  14. mate — to breed
  15. race — humankind
  16. race — a contest
  17. craft — a handicraft
  18. bat — for baseball

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