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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: tear · race · band · swing · stand · ruler · club · date

  1. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  2. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  3. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  4. Have you settled on a ________________?
  5. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  8. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  9. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  10. I can't ________________ this cold.
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. David sat on the ________________.
  14. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  15. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  16. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  21. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  22. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  23. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  24. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.

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

Answer key

  1. date — the fruit
  2. band — a rubber band
  3. swing — in golf
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. stand — for spectators
  6. tear — from crying
  7. club — for golf
  8. stand — on your feet
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. stand — to bear
  11. tear — to rip
  12. race — humankind
  13. swing — to play on
  14. band — a music group
  15. club — for dancing
  16. club — a group
  17. band — a ring
  18. ruler — for measuring
  19. tear — from crying
  20. swing — music
  21. ruler — a monarch
  22. race — the arms race
  23. race — a contest
  24. ruler — for measuring

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