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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: row · race · march · bowl · net · capital

  1. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  2. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  3. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  4. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  7. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  8. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  9. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  10. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  11. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  12. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  13. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  16. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  17. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.

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

Answer key

  1. net — in sport
  2. race — the arms race
  3. net — for catching
  4. row — a line
  5. capital — money
  6. march — the month
  7. bowl — to roll
  8. bowl — a football final
  9. march — music
  10. race — a contest
  11. race — humankind
  12. row — a quarrel
  13. march — the month
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. net — after costs
  16. bowl — a dish
  17. row — to paddle
  18. capital — a city

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