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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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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: current · squash · race · bear · swing · last · trunk · racket

  1. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  3. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  4. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  5. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  6. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  7. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  8. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  9. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  10. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  11. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  14. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  15. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  16. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  17. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  18. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  19. David sat on the ________________.
  20. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  21. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  22. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  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. last — final
  2. squash — the sport
  3. squash — to crush
  4. race — a contest
  5. bear — to put up with
  6. trunk — of a tree
  7. squash — the vegetable
  8. swing — music
  9. swing — in golf
  10. current — happening now
  11. race — humankind
  12. last — to go on
  13. trunk — of a car
  14. bear — the animal
  15. bear — the animal
  16. current — electric
  17. trunk — of an elephant
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. swing — to play on
  20. current — of water
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. racket — a loud noise
  23. last — finally
  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