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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. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  3. The King held a masked ________________.
  4. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  5. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  6. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  9. The tickets are free of ________________.
  10. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  11. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. False peace will not ________________.
  16. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  17. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  18. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  19. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  20. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  21. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  22. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  23. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  24. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. march — music
  3. ball — a dance
  4. charge — electricity
  5. ball — a great time
  6. race — a contest
  7. race — humankind
  8. deal — to handle
  9. charge — a price
  10. charge — in control
  11. lash — an eyelash
  12. field — a subject
  13. field — for sport
  14. last — finally
  15. last — to go on
  16. ball — a round shape
  17. lash — a whip stroke
  18. march — the month
  19. lash — to lash out
  20. march — the month
  21. race — the arms race
  22. last — final
  23. deal — a big deal
  24. deal — an agreement

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