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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 116 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. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  4. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  5. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  8. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  9. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  10. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  11. Did you ________________ the button?
  12. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  13. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  14. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  15. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  18. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  19. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  20. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  21. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  22. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  23. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  24. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. tear — from crying
  3. file — a tool
  4. racket — a loud noise
  5. race — a contest
  6. tear — from crying
  7. ruler — a monarch
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. race — the arms race
  10. file — a line of people
  11. press — to push
  12. band — a music group
  13. press — newspapers
  14. band — a ring
  15. file — a document
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. press — a publisher
  18. ruler — for measuring
  19. field — farmland
  20. ruler — for measuring
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. tear — to rip
  23. field — for sport
  24. race — humankind

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