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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 · fine · race · racket · shower · sharp · content · coach

  1. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  2. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  3. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  4. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  5. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  6. Did you ________________ the meat?
  7. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  8. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  9. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  10. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  11. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  12. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  13. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  14. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  15. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  16. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  19. Have you met the new head ________________?
  20. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  21. It's one o'clock ________________.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  24. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. fine — all right
  3. sharp — with an edge
  4. content — videos and posts
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. season — to add flavour
  7. shower — to wash
  8. fine — a penalty
  9. racket — a loud noise
  10. shower — rain
  11. race — a contest
  12. coach — pulled by horses
  13. fine — high quality
  14. content — the amount
  15. season — of the year
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. race — the arms race
  18. season — in sport
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. sharp — clever
  21. sharp — exactly
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. content — happy
  24. race — humankind

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