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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. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  2. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  3. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  4. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  5. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  6. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  7. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  8. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  9. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  14. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  15. Have you met the new head ________________?
  16. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  19. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  20. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  21. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  24. He was blown up by a land ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. race — the arms race
  3. coach — pulled by horses
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. stem — to come from
  6. race — humankind
  7. pit — a fruit stone
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. stem — a stem cell
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. field — a subject
  12. field — for sport
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. fan — to cool the air
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. mine — for digging
  18. stick — to attach or keep to
  19. pit — a hole
  20. pit — in a race
  21. stem — of a plant
  22. field — farmland
  23. race — a contest
  24. mine — an explosive

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