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

Word bank: race · cold · march · season · bowl · stick

  1. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  2. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  3. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  6. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  7. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  8. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  9. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  10. Did you ________________ the meat?
  11. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. race — the arms race
  2. march — the month
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. cold — an illness
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. race — humankind
  7. bowl — a football final
  8. season — in sport
  9. stick — to attach or keep to
  10. season — to add flavour
  11. march — the month
  12. cold — not warm
  13. bowl — to roll
  14. march — music
  15. bowl — a dish
  16. race — a contest
  17. season — of the year
  18. cold — the Cold War

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