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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 120 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: race · march · club · spring · hand · cell · present · current

  1. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  2. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  4. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  7. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  8. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  9. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  14. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  15. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  16. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  17. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  19. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  20. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  21. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  24. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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

Answer key

  1. race — the arms race
  2. hand — in cards
  3. cell — in biology
  4. current — happening now
  5. hand — help
  6. march — the month
  7. club — a group
  8. race — humankind
  9. present — there
  10. march — the month
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. present — a gift
  14. club — for dancing
  15. current — electric
  16. spring — the season
  17. present — the time now
  18. cell — a phone
  19. march — music
  20. club — for golf
  21. current — of water
  22. spring — of water
  23. race — a contest
  24. spring — a coil

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