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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 116 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. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  2. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  4. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  5. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  6. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  7. Where did you ________________ them?
  8. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  9. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  12. The ________________ took off on time.
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  15. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  16. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  19. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  20. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  23. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  24. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — low music
  2. race — a contest
  3. plane — in geometry
  4. bass — the fish
  5. mug — a face
  6. drill — army training
  7. mug — to rob
  8. lie — to recline
  9. current — of water
  10. field — for sport
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. plane — an aircraft
  13. field — farmland
  14. current — happening now
  15. current — electric
  16. drill — a practice
  17. race — the arms race
  18. plane — a tool
  19. drill — the tool
  20. mug — a cup
  21. field — a subject
  22. lie — an untruth
  23. bass — the instrument
  24. race — humankind

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