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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
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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: straw · pitcher · club · spring · net · race · mouse · chair

  1. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  2. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  3. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  4. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  5. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  8. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  11. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  12. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  13. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  14. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  15. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  16. He is an ace ________________.
  17. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  18. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  19. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  20. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  21. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  22. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  23. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  24. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.

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

Answer key

  1. race — humankind
  2. race — the arms race
  3. club — for dancing
  4. chair — to sit on
  5. club — a group
  6. spring — a coil
  7. mouse — the animal
  8. chair — a professorship
  9. spring — the season
  10. straw — to clutch at straws
  11. spring — of water
  12. mouse — for a computer
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. net — after costs
  15. straw — a straw man
  16. pitcher — in baseball
  17. chair — a leader
  18. net — in sport
  19. club — for golf
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. mouse — the animal
  22. straw — dry grass
  23. net — for catching
  24. race — a contest

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