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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 120 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. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. It's one o'clock ________________.
  5. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  6. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  7. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  8. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  9. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  10. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  11. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  12. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  17. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  19. My mare is ________________ in color.
  20. Did you ________________ the meat?
  21. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  22. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  23. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  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. bay — a part of the sea
  2. season — of the year
  3. field — for sport
  4. sharp — exactly
  5. sharp — with an edge
  6. cap — a hat
  7. sharp — clever
  8. bay — to keep at bay
  9. club — for dancing
  10. race — a contest
  11. file — a document
  12. club — for golf
  13. field — a subject
  14. cap — a lid
  15. field — farmland
  16. race — humankind
  17. file — a line of people
  18. file — a tool
  19. bay — a horse colour
  20. season — to add flavour
  21. club — a group
  22. cap — of ice
  23. season — in sport
  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