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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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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: row · race · branch · ball · ground · bowl · rash · march

  1. Don't do anything ________________.
  2. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  3. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  4. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  5. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  6. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  7. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  8. The King held a masked ________________.
  9. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  13. There's no middle ________________.
  14. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  15. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  16. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  17. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  18. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  19. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  20. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  21. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  22. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  23. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  24. Biology is a ________________ of science.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — hasty
  2. ground — crushed
  3. rash — on the skin
  4. ball — a great time
  5. branch — of a bank
  6. branch — of a tree
  7. row — to paddle
  8. ball — a dance
  9. race — a contest
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. march — music
  12. ball — a round shape
  13. ground — a position
  14. march — the month
  15. rash — a series
  16. ground — the earth
  17. bowl — a football final
  18. bowl — to roll
  19. race — humankind
  20. bowl — a dish
  21. race — the arms race
  22. march — the month
  23. row — a line
  24. branch — a division

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