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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: season · perch · shower · race · temple · pitch · track · swing

  1. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  2. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  3. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  4. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  5. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  6. David sat on the ________________.
  7. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  8. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  9. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  10. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  13. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  14. Did you ________________ the meat?
  15. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  16. When was this ________________ built?
  17. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  18. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  19. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  20. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  21. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  22. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  23. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  24. He keeps ________________ of his days.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. temple — a place of worship
  3. swing — in golf
  4. shower — a meteor shower
  5. season — in sport
  6. swing — to play on
  7. race — a contest
  8. shower — rain
  9. track — a path
  10. track — a song
  11. race — the arms race
  12. pitch — a sales talk
  13. pitch — completely
  14. season — to add flavour
  15. perch — the fish
  16. temple — a place of worship
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. pitch — a sports field
  19. temple — side of the head
  20. season — of the year
  21. swing — music
  22. race — humankind
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. track — to keep track

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