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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. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  4. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  5. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  6. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  7. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  8. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  9. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  10. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. My father caught me by the ________________.
  16. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  19. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  20. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  21. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  22. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  23. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  24. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a hat
  2. field — a subject
  3. pitch — a sales talk
  4. track — a path
  5. pitch — a sports field
  6. bass — low music
  7. track — a song
  8. race — a contest
  9. ruler — a monarch
  10. bass — the fish
  11. field — farmland
  12. race — humankind
  13. cap — of ice
  14. field — for sport
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. track — to keep track
  17. race — the arms race
  18. arm — a part of something
  19. cap — a lid
  20. arm — part of the body
  21. bass — the instrument
  22. ruler — for measuring
  23. pitch — completely
  24. ruler — for measuring

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