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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. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  3. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. It's one o'clock ________________.
  11. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  14. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  18. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  19. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  20. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  23. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  24. I would like to have a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. race — humankind
  2. sharp — clever
  3. race — the arms race
  4. degree — from a university
  5. field — farmland
  6. degree — temperature
  7. vault — in gymnastics
  8. field — for sport
  9. last — final
  10. sharp — exactly
  11. vault — a safe
  12. last — to go on
  13. sharp — with an edge
  14. vault — an arched ceiling
  15. last — finally
  16. degree — an amount
  17. rest — what's left
  18. rest — what's left
  19. stem — to come from
  20. race — a contest
  21. field — a subject
  22. stem — a stem cell
  23. stem — of a plant
  24. rest — a break

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