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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 120 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: ruler · hand · rest · march · board · race · mark · shower

  1. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  2. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  3. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  4. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  5. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  6. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  7. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  8. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  9. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  10. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  13. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  19. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  20. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  21. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  22. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  23. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  24. He's taking a ________________ right now.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — to pay attention
  2. ruler — a monarch
  3. mark — a trace
  4. race — a contest
  5. ruler — for measuring
  6. board — to get on
  7. rest — a break
  8. march — music
  9. shower — rain
  10. race — humankind
  11. march — the month
  12. hand — in cards
  13. race — the arms race
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. mark — a grade
  17. hand — help
  18. rest — what's left
  19. board — a committee
  20. ruler — for measuring
  21. rest — what's left
  22. board — a flat piece
  23. march — the month
  24. shower — to wash

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