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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: club · craft · stem · race · pop · bat

  1. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  2. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  3. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  4. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  5. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  6. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  7. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  8. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  9. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  12. We're almost out of ________________.
  13. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  14. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  15. You don't need to ________________ round.
  16. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  17. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  18. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for golf
  2. club — a group
  3. craft — a skill
  4. stem — to come from
  5. bat — for baseball
  6. pop — music
  7. stem — of a plant
  8. bat — in an idiom
  9. race — a contest
  10. bat — the animal
  11. race — humankind
  12. pop — soda
  13. club — for dancing
  14. race — the arms race
  15. pop — to visit
  16. stem — a stem cell
  17. craft — a handicraft
  18. craft — boats

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