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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. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  2. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  3. What do you think of the new ________________?
  4. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  5. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  8. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  9. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  10. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  11. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  12. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  13. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  14. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  17. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  18. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  19. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  20. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  21. Have you settled on a ________________?
  22. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  23. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  24. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. craft — a skill
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. wound — an injury
  5. date — the fruit
  6. field — farmland
  7. wound — past of 'wind'
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. cabinet — a cupboard
  10. race — humankind
  11. field — for sport
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. craft — boats
  14. race — the arms race
  15. race — a contest
  16. mine — for digging
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. craft — a handicraft
  20. wound — an injury
  21. date — on the calendar
  22. mine — an explosive
  23. racket — a loud noise
  24. mine — belonging to me

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