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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. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  4. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  5. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. Did you ________________ the button?
  9. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  10. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  11. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  15. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  16. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  17. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  18. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  19. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  20. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  21. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  22. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  23. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  24. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. field — a subject
  3. chip — to eat
  4. race — a contest
  5. press — a publisher
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. field — for sport
  8. press — to push
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. chip — in a computer
  11. press — newspapers
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. chip — for betting
  15. calf — a young animal
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. field — farmland
  18. race — humankind
  19. calf — of the leg
  20. stick — a piece of wood
  21. straw — a straw man
  22. capital — a city
  23. race — the arms race
  24. stick — to attach or keep to

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