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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 120 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: tear · net · stand · craft · race · club

  1. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  2. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  7. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  8. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  9. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  10. I can't ________________ this cold.
  11. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  12. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  13. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  14. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  15. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  16. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  17. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  18. He took the fish out of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. race — a contest
  2. club — for golf
  3. tear — to rip
  4. club — a group
  5. race — humankind
  6. craft — a skill
  7. club — for dancing
  8. craft — boats
  9. tear — from crying
  10. stand — to bear
  11. net — in sport
  12. race — the arms race
  13. craft — a handicraft
  14. stand — on your feet
  15. net — after costs
  16. stand — for spectators
  17. tear — from crying
  18. net — for catching

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