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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: bowl · present · chest · fork · bat · race

  1. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  5. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  6. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  9. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  10. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  11. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  12. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  13. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  18. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. present — the time now
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. race — humankind
  5. race — a contest
  6. fork — to eat with
  7. race — the arms race
  8. bowl — a football final
  9. chest — of your body
  10. fork — in a road
  11. bowl — a dish
  12. bowl — to roll
  13. present — there
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. chest — of your body
  16. chest — a box
  17. fork — a garden tool
  18. present — a gift

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