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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. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  2. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  6. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  7. The ball is in your ________________.
  8. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  9. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  12. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  13. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  14. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  15. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  16. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  17. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  19. It's one o'clock ________________.
  20. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  21. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  22. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  23. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  24. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.

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

Answer key

  1. race — humankind
  2. court — of a king
  3. field — a subject
  4. court — of law
  5. bank — for money
  6. face — part of the head
  7. court — for sport
  8. bank — of a river
  9. race — a contest
  10. field — farmland
  11. sharp — with an edge
  12. sharp — clever
  13. race — the arms race
  14. bank — for money
  15. root — the cause
  16. straw — dry grass
  17. face — to confront
  18. field — for sport
  19. sharp — exactly
  20. straw — a straw man
  21. root — of a word
  22. straw — to clutch at straws
  23. face — to point toward
  24. root — of a plant

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