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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. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  2. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  3. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  4. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  5. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  6. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  7. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  8. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  9. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  10. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  11. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  12. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  13. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  14. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  17. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  18. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  19. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  20. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  21. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  22. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  23. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  24. Have you found your soul ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. race — a contest
  2. fine — all right
  3. mate — to breed
  4. cap — a hat
  5. spring — a coil
  6. hide — animal skin
  7. mate — a friend
  8. field — a subject
  9. lie — to recline
  10. cap — a lid
  11. field — for sport
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. fine — high quality
  14. cap — of ice
  15. spring — the season
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. field — farmland
  18. lie — an untruth
  19. race — the arms race
  20. spring — of water
  21. fine — a penalty
  22. race — humankind
  23. hide — to keep secret
  24. mate — a partner

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