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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. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  3. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  4. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  7. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  8. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  9. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  10. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  11. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  12. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  13. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  14. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  15. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  18. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  19. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  20. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  21. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  22. Did you ________________ the meat?
  23. Where did you ________________ them?
  24. We were using a ________________ as a seat.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. race — the arms race
  4. branch — of a bank
  5. field — farmland
  6. race — a contest
  7. branch — a division
  8. field — a subject
  9. branch — of a tree
  10. rock — to move gently
  11. race — humankind
  12. mug — a cup
  13. mug — a face
  14. rest — a break
  15. racket — a loud noise
  16. field — for sport
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. season — of the year
  19. season — in sport
  20. rest — what's left
  21. rest — what's left
  22. season — to add flavour
  23. mug — to rob
  24. rock — a stone

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