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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: pit · craft · bat · bear · march · race

  1. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  2. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  3. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  4. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  5. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  6. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  7. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  8. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  9. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  12. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  13. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  16. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — to put up with
  2. bear — the animal
  3. march — the month
  4. pit — in a race
  5. race — a contest
  6. craft — boats
  7. bear — the animal
  8. craft — a skill
  9. craft — a handicraft
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. march — the month
  12. pit — a fruit stone
  13. pit — a hole
  14. march — music
  15. bat — in an idiom
  16. race — humankind
  17. bat — the animal
  18. race — the arms race

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