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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: object · chest · march · present · race · drill

  1. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  2. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  6. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  7. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  8. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  9. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  10. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  11. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  12. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  13. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  14. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  15. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  16. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  17. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  18. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — a box
  2. present — there
  3. march — the month
  4. chest — of your body
  5. march — the month
  6. march — music
  7. race — a contest
  8. present — the time now
  9. race — humankind
  10. drill — a practice
  11. object — a thing
  12. race — the arms race
  13. object — an aim
  14. chest — of your body
  15. object — to protest
  16. drill — army training
  17. present — a gift
  18. drill — the tool

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