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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 116 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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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: mate · swing · race · spell · bat · row · sharp · calf

  1. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  2. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  3. It's one o'clock ________________.
  4. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  5. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  6. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. Have you found your soul ________________?
  9. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  10. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  11. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  14. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  15. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  16. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  17. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  18. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  19. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  20. David sat on the ________________.
  21. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  22. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  23. How do you ________________ your surname?
  24. I had a ________________ with my boss today.

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

Answer key

  1. race — humankind
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. sharp — exactly
  4. mate — to breed
  5. bat — the animal
  6. mate — a friend
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. mate — a partner
  9. sharp — with an edge
  10. spell — magic
  11. swing — music
  12. row — to paddle
  13. swing — in golf
  14. spell — a short time
  15. bat — in an idiom
  16. race — the arms race
  17. calf — of the leg
  18. sharp — clever
  19. race — a contest
  20. swing — to play on
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. row — a line
  23. spell — letters
  24. row — a quarrel

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