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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 116 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. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  2. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  4. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  5. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  6. I'll be taking the ________________.
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  10. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  11. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  12. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  15. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  16. He is an ace ________________.
  17. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  18. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  22. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  23. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  24. The ________________ change colour in autumn.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. race — a contest
  3. chip — to eat
  4. last — finally
  5. chip — for betting
  6. tube — the underground
  7. wind — moving air
  8. field — farmland
  9. race — humankind
  10. last — final
  11. tube — a container
  12. race — the arms race
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. leaves — lets stay
  15. chip — in a computer
  16. pitcher — in baseball
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. wind — moving air
  20. last — to go on
  21. field — for sport
  22. tube — in a tire
  23. leaves — to go away
  24. leaves — of a tree

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