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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: march · fan · club · row · court · race · plane · wind

  1. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  2. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  3. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  6. The ________________ took off on time.
  7. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  8. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  9. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  12. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  13. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  19. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  20. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  21. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  22. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  23. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  24. The ball is in your ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of a king
  2. march — the month
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. march — music
  5. fan — to cool the air
  6. plane — an aircraft
  7. race — a contest
  8. club — a group
  9. row — a quarrel
  10. march — the month
  11. club — for golf
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. row — a line
  14. row — to paddle
  15. race — humankind
  16. court — of law
  17. wind — moving air
  18. plane — in geometry
  19. plane — a tool
  20. wind — to turn a key
  21. wind — moving air
  22. club — for dancing
  23. race — the arms race
  24. court — for sport

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