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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. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  2. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  3. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  4. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  9. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  10. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  11. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  12. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  13. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  14. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  15. The ________________ market has crashed.
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. How do you ________________ your surname?
  18. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  19. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  20. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  24. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — magic
  2. pass — a permit
  3. cap — a lid
  4. field — for sport
  5. field — a subject
  6. stock — a soup base
  7. degree — an amount
  8. degree — from a university
  9. cap — a hat
  10. trunk — of an elephant
  11. pass — to succeed
  12. spell — a short time
  13. trunk — of a tree
  14. stock — goods
  15. stock — shares
  16. race — a contest
  17. spell — letters
  18. race — the arms race
  19. trunk — of a car
  20. cap — of ice
  21. degree — temperature
  22. field — farmland
  23. race — humankind
  24. pass — to spend time

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