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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: present · race · march · bowl · pop · chip

  1. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  2. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  3. You don't need to ________________ round.
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  7. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  8. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  9. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  10. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  11. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  12. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  13. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  14. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  15. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  16. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  17. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  18. We're almost out of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chip — to eat
  2. bowl — to roll
  3. pop — to visit
  4. march — music
  5. race — humankind
  6. pop — music
  7. race — a contest
  8. march — the month
  9. chip — for betting
  10. bowl — a dish
  11. present — the time now
  12. bowl — a football final
  13. march — the month
  14. present — a gift
  15. present — there
  16. race — the arms race
  17. chip — in a computer
  18. pop — soda

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