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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: chest · club · date · net · kick · pop · race · fork

  1. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  2. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  3. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  4. Have you settled on a ________________?
  5. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  6. We're almost out of ________________.
  7. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  8. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  9. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  10. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  11. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  12. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  13. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  14. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  15. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  16. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  17. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  18. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  19. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  20. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  21. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  22. You don't need to ________________ round.
  23. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  24. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.

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

Answer key

  1. race — the arms race
  2. fork — a garden tool
  3. fork — in a road
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. net — after costs
  6. pop — soda
  7. net — for catching
  8. fork — to eat with
  9. club — a group
  10. kick — in football
  11. chest — of your body
  12. net — in sport
  13. chest — a box
  14. race — humankind
  15. pop — music
  16. kick — with a leg
  17. club — for dancing
  18. chest — of your body
  19. race — a contest
  20. date — the fruit
  21. club — for golf
  22. pop — to visit
  23. date — on the calendar
  24. kick — a thrill

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