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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. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  8. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  9. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  10. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  11. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  12. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  13. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  14. Have you settled on a ________________?
  15. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  16. Don't do anything ________________.
  17. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  19. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  20. I'll be taking the ________________.
  21. The tickets are free of ________________.
  22. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  23. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  24. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — steady
  2. field — farmland
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. field — a subject
  5. chair — to sit on
  6. chair — a leader
  7. race — a contest
  8. rash — a series
  9. tube — in a tire
  10. charge — electricity
  11. rash — on the skin
  12. date — the fruit
  13. race — the arms race
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. rash — hasty
  17. race — humankind
  18. field — for sport
  19. tube — a container
  20. tube — the underground
  21. charge — a price
  22. firm — decided
  23. firm — a company
  24. charge — in control

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