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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. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  5. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  6. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  7. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  8. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  9. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  10. What do you think of the new ________________?
  11. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  14. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  15. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  18. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  19. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  20. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  21. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  22. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  23. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  24. This piece is in a major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. face — part of the head
  3. field — farmland
  4. face — to confront
  5. chair — to sit on
  6. race — a contest
  7. key — for a lock
  8. cabinet — a cupboard
  9. face — to point toward
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. deal — to handle
  12. race — humankind
  13. pitch — a sales talk
  14. deal — an agreement
  15. pitch — completely
  16. field — for sport
  17. deal — a big deal
  18. pitch — a sports field
  19. chair — a leader
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. race — the arms race
  22. chair — a professorship
  23. key — the most important part
  24. key — in music

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