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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: drill · last · pound · fine · race · club

  1. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  2. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  4. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  5. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  6. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  7. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  8. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  9. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  10. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  11. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  12. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  13. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  14. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  15. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  16. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — a practice
  2. race — a contest
  3. pound — a weight
  4. race — the arms race
  5. fine — all right
  6. drill — the tool
  7. pound — to hit hard
  8. race — humankind
  9. club — for golf
  10. fine — a penalty
  11. club — for dancing
  12. club — a group
  13. pound — for dogs
  14. fine — high quality
  15. last — final
  16. drill — army training
  17. last — to go on
  18. last — finally

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