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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. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  2. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  6. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  7. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  8. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  9. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  10. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  11. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  12. The King held a masked ________________.
  13. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  14. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  15. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  16. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  17. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  18. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  19. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  20. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  21. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  22. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  23. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  24. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. current — of water
  2. track — a path
  3. field — for sport
  4. field — a subject
  5. track — to keep track
  6. ball — a great time
  7. club — for golf
  8. current — electric
  9. ball — a round shape
  10. vault — a safe
  11. current — happening now
  12. ball — a dance
  13. track — a song
  14. race — humankind
  15. lie — an untruth
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. lie — to recline
  18. club — a group
  19. field — farmland
  20. vault — an arched ceiling
  21. club — for dancing
  22. vault — in gymnastics
  23. race — a contest
  24. race — the arms race

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