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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. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  2. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  3. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  6. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  7. The ball is in your ________________.
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. The King held a masked ________________.
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  13. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  14. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  15. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. I'll be taking the ________________.
  20. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  21. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  22. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  23. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  24. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. chip — to eat
  3. ball — a round shape
  4. court — of law
  5. ball — a great time
  6. chip — for betting
  7. court — for sport
  8. field — farmland
  9. court — of a king
  10. ball — a dance
  11. race — the arms race
  12. chip — in a computer
  13. mark — a grade
  14. mark — a trace
  15. tube — a container
  16. field — for sport
  17. mark — to pay attention
  18. race — a contest
  19. tube — the underground
  20. squash — the sport
  21. race — humankind
  22. squash — to crush
  23. squash — the vegetable
  24. tube — in a tire

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