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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 120 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. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  3. The tickets are free of ________________.
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  6. Have you found your soul ________________?
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  9. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  10. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  11. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  12. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  20. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  21. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  24. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. root — the cause
  3. charge — a price
  4. field — a subject
  5. charge — electricity
  6. mate — a partner
  7. race — humankind
  8. kid — child
  9. staff — a stick
  10. mate — to breed
  11. kid — to tease
  12. staff — employees
  13. field — farmland
  14. field — for sport
  15. root — of a word
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. staff — employees
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. root — of a plant
  20. race — the arms race
  21. mate — a friend
  22. cold — not warm
  23. charge — in control
  24. race — a contest

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