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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. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  2. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  7. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  8. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  9. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  10. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  11. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  12. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  15. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  18. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  19. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  20. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  21. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  22. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  23. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  24. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. race — a contest
  3. chip — to eat
  4. field — a subject
  5. land — to come down
  6. wax — in the ear
  7. chip — in a computer
  8. chip — for betting
  9. toast — bread
  10. toast — a drink to someone
  11. can — a tin
  12. can — to be able to
  13. field — farmland
  14. race — humankind
  15. wax — for sculpting
  16. field — for sport
  17. land — a country
  18. wake — before a funeral
  19. wake — to stop sleeping
  20. wax — to grow
  21. race — the arms race
  22. can — a tin
  23. toast — the most admired
  24. wake — a trail

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