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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. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  2. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  3. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  6. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  9. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  17. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  18. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  19. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  20. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  21. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  22. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  23. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  24. The ________________ change colour in autumn.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — to crush
  2. race — the arms race
  3. squash — the vegetable
  4. field — a subject
  5. leaves — to go away
  6. degree — an amount
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. can — a tin
  9. leaves — lets stay
  10. degree — temperature
  11. field — farmland
  12. craft — a skill
  13. degree — from a university
  14. squash — the sport
  15. race — a contest
  16. craft — a handicraft
  17. can — a tin
  18. can — to be able to
  19. hand — help
  20. craft — boats
  21. field — for sport
  22. hand — in cards
  23. race — humankind
  24. leaves — of a tree

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