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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. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  4. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  5. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  6. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  7. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  10. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  11. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  14. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  15. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  16. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  17. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  18. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  19. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  20. The ________________ took off on time.
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  24. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. race — humankind
  2. field — a subject
  3. bear — to put up with
  4. trunk — of an elephant
  5. bear — the animal
  6. wound — past of 'wind'
  7. craft — a handicraft
  8. race — the arms race
  9. race — a contest
  10. craft — a skill
  11. trunk — of a tree
  12. wound — an injury
  13. bear — the animal
  14. plane — in geometry
  15. plane — a tool
  16. wound — an injury
  17. shower — to wash
  18. shower — a meteor shower
  19. craft — boats
  20. plane — an aircraft
  21. shower — rain
  22. trunk — of a car
  23. field — farmland
  24. field — for sport

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