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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: wax · march · race · club · tear · racket

  1. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  2. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  3. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  4. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  5. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  6. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  7. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  8. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  9. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  10. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  13. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  16. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  17. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  18. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. race — humankind
  2. racket — a loud noise
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. race — a contest
  5. wax — in the ear
  6. tear — to rip
  7. club — for golf
  8. club — for dancing
  9. tear — from crying
  10. march — music
  11. race — the arms race
  12. wax — to grow
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. march — the month
  15. club — a group
  16. wax — for sculpting
  17. tear — from crying
  18. march — the month

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