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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: race · craft · fan · pitch · march · kick

  1. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  2. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  5. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  6. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  9. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  10. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  11. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  12. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  13. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  14. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  15. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  16. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  17. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  18. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. pitch — a sports field
  3. race — a contest
  4. race — humankind
  5. march — the month
  6. kick — a thrill
  7. march — the month
  8. craft — a skill
  9. race — the arms race
  10. pitch — completely
  11. craft — boats
  12. kick — in football
  13. fan — to cool the air
  14. craft — a handicraft
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. pitch — a sales talk
  17. march — music
  18. kick — with a leg

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