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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. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  8. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  9. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  10. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  13. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  14. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  15. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  16. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  17. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  18. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  19. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  20. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  21. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  22. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  23. False peace will not ________________.
  24. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. race — a contest
  3. chip — for betting
  4. field — a subject
  5. race — the arms race
  6. clip — for paper
  7. mark — to pay attention
  8. chip — to eat
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. clip — a video
  12. stick — to attach or keep to
  13. race — humankind
  14. mark — a grade
  15. clip — to cut
  16. patient — calm and waiting
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. field — farmland
  19. last — final
  20. chip — in a computer
  21. field — for sport
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. last — to go on
  24. mark — a trace

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