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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  2. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  3. Did you ________________ the meat?
  4. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  5. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  6. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  14. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  15. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  16. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  20. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. rock — a stone
  3. season — to add flavour
  4. race — humankind
  5. bear — to put up with
  6. season — of the year
  7. degree — from a university
  8. degree — temperature
  9. rock — music
  10. field — for sport
  11. drill — a practice
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. bat — the animal
  14. drill — army training
  15. bear — the animal
  16. season — in sport
  17. race — the arms race
  18. race — a contest
  19. rock — to move gently
  20. bear — the animal
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. degree — an amount
  23. drill — the tool
  24. field — farmland

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