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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. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  3. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  4. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  5. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  6. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  7. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  10. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  11. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  14. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  15. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  18. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  21. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  22. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  24. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. race — humankind
  3. hand — in cards
  4. root — of a plant
  5. lean — thin
  6. race — the arms race
  7. content — the amount
  8. field — for sport
  9. hand — part of the body
  10. deal — a big deal
  11. root — of a word
  12. court — for sport
  13. lean — to rest against
  14. root — the cause
  15. deal — to handle
  16. court — of a king
  17. deal — an agreement
  18. lean — to bend
  19. field — a subject
  20. court — of law
  21. content — videos and posts
  22. content — happy
  23. field — farmland
  24. race — a contest

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