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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: hand · nail · race · mark · craft · swing · club · cold

  1. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  2. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  5. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  6. David sat on the ________________.
  7. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  8. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  11. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  14. The ________________ went through the wall.
  15. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  19. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  20. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  23. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  24. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — in cards
  2. hand — part of the body
  3. race — a contest
  4. club — for golf
  5. mark — a grade
  6. swing — to play on
  7. club — a group
  8. swing — in golf
  9. cold — not warm
  10. swing — music
  11. club — for dancing
  12. race — humankind
  13. craft — boats
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. cold — an illness
  17. race — the arms race
  18. mark — a trace
  19. nail — on a finger
  20. hand — help
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. craft — a skill
  23. mark — to pay attention
  24. craft — a handicraft

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