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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 116 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: fine · drill · club · race · chair · pitch

  1. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  2. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  3. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  4. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  5. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  6. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  9. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  10. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  11. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  12. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  13. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  14. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  18. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — high quality
  2. club — for golf
  3. fine — all right
  4. pitch — a sports field
  5. pitch — completely
  6. fine — a penalty
  7. race — the arms race
  8. club — a group
  9. drill — a practice
  10. drill — army training
  11. pitch — a sales talk
  12. chair — a leader
  13. drill — the tool
  14. chair — a professorship
  15. race — a contest
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. race — humankind
  18. club — for dancing

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