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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.

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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: race · mark · court · drill · ground · safe · plane · bat

  1. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  2. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  3. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  9. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  10. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  11. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  12. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  13. The ball is in your ________________.
  14. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  15. There's no middle ________________.
  16. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  17. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  18. The ________________ took off on time.
  19. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  20. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  21. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  22. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  23. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  24. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — for baseball
  2. ground — the earth
  3. court — of a king
  4. bat — the animal
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. ground — crushed
  7. race — humankind
  8. drill — the tool
  9. drill — army training
  10. court — of law
  11. mark — a grade
  12. race — the arms race
  13. court — for sport
  14. safe — a strongbox
  15. ground — a position
  16. mark — to pay attention
  17. safe — out of danger
  18. plane — an aircraft
  19. plane — a tool
  20. drill — a practice
  21. safe — out of danger
  22. plane — in geometry
  23. race — a contest
  24. mark — a trace

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