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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 ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  7. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  8. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  9. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  10. That must've been a ________________.
  11. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  12. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  13. The ball is in your ________________.
  14. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  15. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  16. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  17. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  18. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  19. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  20. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  21. Did you ________________ the button?
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  24. Take your time. There's no ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of law
  2. field — a subject
  3. race — the arms race
  4. field — farmland
  5. hand — help
  6. court — of a king
  7. pass — to succeed
  8. race — a contest
  9. race — humankind
  10. rush — a thrill
  11. present — a gift
  12. present — the time now
  13. court — for sport
  14. pass — to spend time
  15. hand — in cards
  16. present — there
  17. rush — to hurry
  18. pass — a permit
  19. press — a publisher
  20. press — newspapers
  21. press — to push
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. field — for sport
  24. rush — hurry

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