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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: present · court · swing · pop · race · hand · patient · march

  1. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  2. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. You don't need to ________________ round.
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  6. David sat on the ________________.
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. We're almost out of ________________.
  11. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  12. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  13. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  17. The ball is in your ________________.
  18. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  19. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  20. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  21. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  22. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  23. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  24. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — in golf
  2. race — a contest
  3. pop — to visit
  4. march — the month
  5. present — a gift
  6. swing — to play on
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. swing — music
  9. hand — in cards
  10. pop — soda
  11. race — humankind
  12. court — of a king
  13. march — the month
  14. march — music
  15. hand — help
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. court — for sport
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. patient — calm and waiting
  20. court — of law
  21. pop — music
  22. present — there
  23. present — the time now
  24. race — the arms race

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