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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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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: drill · race · present · game · club · shower · bass · kid

  1. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  2. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  4. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  5. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  6. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  7. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  8. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  9. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  10. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  11. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  12. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  13. That was a fun ________________.
  14. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  15. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  16. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  17. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  21. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  22. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  23. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  24. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?

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

Answer key

  1. shower — rain
  2. race — a contest
  3. drill — the tool
  4. club — a group
  5. drill — army training
  6. drill — a practice
  7. game — wild animals
  8. present — the time now
  9. shower — to wash
  10. bass — the fish
  11. club — for dancing
  12. club — for golf
  13. game — a match
  14. kid — to tease
  15. bass — low music
  16. bass — the instrument
  17. present — there
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  19. kid — child
  20. shower — a meteor shower
  21. race — humankind
  22. game — a kind of play
  23. race — the arms race
  24. present — a gift

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