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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. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. The ________________ took off on time.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  5. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  6. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  7. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  8. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  11. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  12. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  13. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  14. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  15. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  16. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  17. I'll be taking the ________________.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  20. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  23. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  24. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. plane — an aircraft
  3. field — farmland
  4. race — the arms race
  5. fall — the season
  6. board — a flat piece
  7. fall — to drop
  8. race — humankind
  9. game — a match
  10. board — a committee
  11. trunk — of a car
  12. game — wild animals
  13. trunk — of an elephant
  14. plane — in geometry
  15. board — to get on
  16. plane — a tool
  17. tube — the underground
  18. race — a contest
  19. tube — in a tire
  20. trunk — of a tree
  21. field — a subject
  22. tube — a container
  23. game — a kind of play
  24. fall — to drop

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