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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 stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  3. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  4. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  7. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  8. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  9. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  10. What do you think of the new ________________?
  11. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  12. He is an ace ________________.
  13. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  14. Don't do anything ________________.
  15. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  16. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  17. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  22. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  23. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  24. Fill up this ________________ with water.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. fine — a penalty
  3. file — a document
  4. cabinet — a cupboard
  5. field — a subject
  6. rash — on the skin
  7. file — a line of people
  8. file — a tool
  9. rash — a series
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. pitcher — in baseball
  13. staff — employees
  14. rash — hasty
  15. fine — all right
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. race — humankind
  18. race — a contest
  19. race — the arms race
  20. field — farmland
  21. fine — high quality
  22. staff — a stick
  23. staff — employees
  24. pitcher — a jug

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