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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 120 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: march · nail · kid · racket · race · pitch

  1. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  2. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  7. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  8. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  13. The ________________ went through the wall.
  14. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  15. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — for a hammer
  2. march — the month
  3. march — music
  4. nail — on a finger
  5. race — humankind
  6. pitch — a sports field
  7. pitch — a sales talk
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. kid — to tease
  10. racket — a loud noise
  11. race — the arms race
  12. march — the month
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. pitch — completely
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. kid — child
  18. race — a contest

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