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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: club · bat · race · march · bowl · cue

  1. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  3. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  4. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  5. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  6. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  7. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  10. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  11. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  12. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  13. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  14. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  15. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  16. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  17. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  18. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. bowl — to roll
  3. cue — a hint
  4. club — for dancing
  5. march — the month
  6. bowl — a dish
  7. bat — in an idiom
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. march — the month
  10. race — humankind
  11. club — a group
  12. march — music
  13. race — a contest
  14. race — the arms race
  15. cue — a signal
  16. cue — for pool
  17. bowl — a football final
  18. club — for golf

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