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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: kid · march · board · race · craft · calf

  1. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  5. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  6. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  9. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  10. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  14. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  17. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  18. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. craft — a skill
  3. march — music
  4. board — a committee
  5. race — a contest
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. race — the arms race
  8. board — a flat piece
  9. march — the month
  10. calf — a young animal
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. race — humankind
  13. craft — a handicraft
  14. craft — boats
  15. kid — child
  16. march — the month
  17. calf — of the leg
  18. board — to get on

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