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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: bowl · kick · tear · mine · bat · race

  1. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  2. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  9. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  10. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  13. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  14. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  15. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  16. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  17. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  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. race — the arms race
  2. bat — in an idiom
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. kick — in football
  5. tear — from crying
  6. bowl — a football final
  7. bat — the animal
  8. mine — belonging to me
  9. race — a contest
  10. kick — a thrill
  11. tear — to rip
  12. tear — from crying
  13. mine — for digging
  14. mine — an explosive
  15. bowl — to roll
  16. bowl — a dish
  17. race — humankind
  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