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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. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  2. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  7. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. My father caught me by the ________________.
  10. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  11. The ________________ went through the wall.
  12. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  13. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  14. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  15. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  18. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  19. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. Have you settled on a ________________?
  22. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  23. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — a trail
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. bat — the animal
  4. race — humankind
  5. field — for sport
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. content — videos and posts
  8. race — the arms race
  9. arm — part of the body
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. arm — a part of something
  13. content — happy
  14. race — a contest
  15. bat — in an idiom
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. wake — before a funeral
  18. date — the fruit
  19. content — the amount
  20. field — a subject
  21. date — on the calendar
  22. nail — on a finger
  23. wake — to stop sleeping
  24. field — farmland

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