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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. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  2. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  5. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  6. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  13. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  16. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  19. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  20. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  23. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  24. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. rest — a break
  3. field — farmland
  4. race — humankind
  5. firm — steady
  6. race — a contest
  7. cold — an illness
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. field — for sport
  10. field — a subject
  11. cold — not warm
  12. ruler — a monarch
  13. ruler — for measuring
  14. bat — the animal
  15. bat — in an idiom
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. ruler — for measuring
  19. race — the arms race
  20. firm — a company
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. rest — what's left
  23. calf — of the leg
  24. firm — decided

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