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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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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: march · dip · court · stand · drill · mate · last · race

  1. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  3. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  4. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  5. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  6. Have you found your soul ________________?
  7. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  8. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. The ball is in your ________________.
  11. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  12. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  13. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  14. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  15. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  16. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  17. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  18. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  19. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  20. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  21. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  22. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  23. I can't ________________ this cold.
  24. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. drill — a practice
  3. march — the month
  4. mate — a friend
  5. court — of law
  6. mate — a partner
  7. race — a contest
  8. drill — the tool
  9. last — to go on
  10. court — for sport
  11. drill — army training
  12. stand — for spectators
  13. mate — to breed
  14. dip — to dunk
  15. dip — a sauce
  16. race — humankind
  17. dip — to sink
  18. court — of a king
  19. last — final
  20. march — the month
  21. race — the arms race
  22. stand — on your feet
  23. stand — to bear
  24. march — music

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