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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: clip · racket · bass · ground · race · ball · coach · squash

  1. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  2. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  4. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. Have you met the new head ________________?
  7. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  8. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  9. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  12. The King held a masked ________________.
  13. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  14. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  15. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  16. There's no middle ________________.
  17. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  18. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  19. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  20. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  23. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  24. Hold the papers together with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a great time
  2. race — a contest
  3. squash — to crush
  4. bass — the instrument
  5. race — the arms race
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. ground — the earth
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. squash — the sport
  10. clip — a video
  11. racket — a loud noise
  12. ball — a dance
  13. ground — crushed
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. squash — the vegetable
  16. ground — a position
  17. coach — pulled by horses
  18. race — humankind
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. bass — low music
  21. clip — to cut
  22. ball — a round shape
  23. bass — the fish
  24. clip — for paper

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