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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.

Words on the sheet
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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 · mine · season · saw · spring · racket · hand · chair

  1. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  2. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  3. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  4. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  5. She's very handy with a ________________.
  6. Did you ________________ the meat?
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  12. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  16. He works in a ________________ mill.
  17. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  18. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  19. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  20. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  21. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — in cards
  2. race — the arms race
  3. mine — for digging
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. saw — the tool
  6. season — to add flavour
  7. spring — a coil
  8. hand — help
  9. chair — a professorship
  10. spring — the season
  11. saw — past of 'see'
  12. race — a contest
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. mine — an explosive
  16. saw — the tool
  17. race — humankind
  18. season — of the year
  19. racket — a loud noise
  20. chair — a leader
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. season — in sport
  24. spring — of water

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