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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. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  2. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  6. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  7. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  8. The ________________ went through the wall.
  9. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  10. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  13. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  14. Where did you ________________ them?
  15. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  19. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  20. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  21. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  22. That was a fun ________________.
  23. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — a cup
  2. race — humankind
  3. field — for sport
  4. game — wild animals
  5. mug — a face
  6. mine — belonging to me
  7. fall — to drop
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. race — the arms race
  10. fall — the season
  11. field — farmland
  12. board — a committee
  13. nail — on a finger
  14. mug — to rob
  15. mine — for digging
  16. race — a contest
  17. board — to get on
  18. mine — an explosive
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. fall — to drop
  21. game — a kind of play
  22. game — a match
  23. board — a flat piece
  24. field — a subject

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