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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: swing · stick · degree · fall · bat · racket · board · race

  1. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  2. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  3. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  4. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  5. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. David sat on the ________________.
  8. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  9. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  10. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  11. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  16. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  17. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  18. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  19. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  20. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  21. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  22. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  23. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  24. ________________ games are popular in Germany.

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

Answer key

  1. race — humankind
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. race — the arms race
  5. stick — to attach or keep to
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. swing — to play on
  8. degree — from a university
  9. fall — to drop
  10. race — a contest
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. degree — temperature
  13. bat — the animal
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. fall — to drop
  16. board — a committee
  17. degree — an amount
  18. swing — in golf
  19. racket — a loud noise
  20. board — to get on
  21. swing — music
  22. fall — the season
  23. stick — a piece of wood
  24. board — a flat piece

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