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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 would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  2. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  3. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  4. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  5. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  6. It's one o'clock ________________.
  7. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  8. When are we going to ________________?
  9. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  12. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  13. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  14. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  15. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  16. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  17. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  18. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  21. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  22. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  24. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — a drink to someone
  2. fork — to eat with
  3. land — a country
  4. toast — the most admired
  5. toast — bread
  6. sharp — exactly
  7. firm — decided
  8. land — to come down
  9. fork — in a road
  10. field — a subject
  11. object — a thing
  12. fork — a garden tool
  13. race — a contest
  14. sharp — with an edge
  15. object — to protest
  16. sharp — clever
  17. object — an aim
  18. race — humankind
  19. field — for sport
  20. firm — steady
  21. firm — a company
  22. land — ground
  23. field — farmland
  24. race — the arms race

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