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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 don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  2. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  3. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  7. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  8. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  9. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  10. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  13. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  14. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  15. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  16. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  17. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  18. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  19. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  20. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  21. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  22. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  23. Have you met the new head ________________?
  24. I had a ________________ with my boss today.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — the animal
  2. race — humankind
  3. fork — to eat with
  4. field — farmland
  5. field — for sport
  6. row — a line
  7. coach — pulled by horses
  8. fork — a garden tool
  9. cue — a signal
  10. mouse — for a computer
  11. field — a subject
  12. race — a contest
  13. cue — for pool
  14. fork — in a road
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. row — to paddle
  17. march — music
  18. mouse — the animal
  19. cue — a hint
  20. race — the arms race
  21. march — the month
  22. march — the month
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. row — a quarrel

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