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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: hand · court · race · bowl · bark · rest

  1. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  2. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  3. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  4. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  7. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  8. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  9. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  10. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  13. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  14. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  15. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. The ball is in your ________________.
  18. I got dealt a bad ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a football final
  2. bark — a dog's sound
  3. rest — a break
  4. rest — what's left
  5. race — the arms race
  6. hand — help
  7. race — a contest
  8. bark — of a tree
  9. bowl — to roll
  10. court — of law
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. bowl — a dish
  13. bark — to shout
  14. race — humankind
  15. rest — what's left
  16. court — of a king
  17. court — for sport
  18. hand — in cards

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