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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 120 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. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  2. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  4. Don't do anything ________________.
  5. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  6. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  7. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  10. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  11. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  12. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  13. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  17. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  18. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  19. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  20. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  23. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  24. Do you need a ________________ with that?

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

Answer key

  1. rash — a series
  2. hand — in cards
  3. calf — of the leg
  4. rash — hasty
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. race — a contest
  7. deal — a big deal
  8. field — farmland
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. calf — a young animal
  11. prune — to trim
  12. deal — an agreement
  13. prune — the fruit
  14. field — a subject
  15. field — for sport
  16. race — humankind
  17. rash — on the skin
  18. prune — to trim
  19. deal — to handle
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. race — the arms race
  23. fan — to cool the air
  24. hand — help

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