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

  1. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  4. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  5. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  6. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  12. Did you ________________ the button?
  13. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  14. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  17. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  18. It's one o'clock ________________.
  19. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  20. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  21. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  24. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — a coil
  2. field — farmland
  3. sharp — clever
  4. race — the arms race
  5. press — newspapers
  6. game — wild animals
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. field — for sport
  9. race — humankind
  10. field — a subject
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. press — to push
  13. patient — calm and waiting
  14. straw — to clutch at straws
  15. spring — the season
  16. press — a publisher
  17. game — a kind of play
  18. sharp — exactly
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. straw — dry grass
  21. sharp — with an edge
  22. spring — of water
  23. game — a match
  24. race — a contest

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