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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: pop · bank · jam · bowl · fan · bat · kid · race

  1. You don't need to ________________ round.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  4. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  5. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  6. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  9. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  16. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  20. We're almost out of ________________.
  21. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  22. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  23. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  24. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — to visit
  2. kid — to tease
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. jam — in traffic
  5. jam — a tight spot
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. race — humankind
  8. jam — to spread on bread
  9. bank — for money
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. bowl — a dish
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. pop — music
  14. bat — the animal
  15. bank — for money
  16. bowl — to roll
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. race — a contest
  19. fan — to cool the air
  20. pop — soda
  21. race — the arms race
  22. kid — child
  23. bowl — a football final
  24. bank — of a river

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