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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: court · field · race · row · club · rock · pitcher · cue

  1. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  2. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  5. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  8. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  9. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  10. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  11. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. He is an ace ________________.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  16. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  17. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  18. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  19. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  20. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  23. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  24. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.

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

Answer key

  1. race — the arms race
  2. race — a contest
  3. field — farmland
  4. court — of a king
  5. club — for dancing
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. rock — to move gently
  8. row — a quarrel
  9. rock — a stone
  10. cue — for pool
  11. cue — a hint
  12. court — for sport
  13. pitcher — in baseball
  14. field — a subject
  15. cue — a signal
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. rock — music
  18. race — humankind
  19. court — of law
  20. club — for golf
  21. row — to paddle
  22. field — for sport
  23. club — a group
  24. row — a line

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