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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. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  5. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  6. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  7. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  10. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  11. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  12. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  13. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  14. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  15. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  16. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  17. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  18. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  19. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  20. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  21. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  22. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  23. There's no middle ________________.
  24. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. field — a subject
  3. race — a contest
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. pass — a permit
  6. pass — to succeed
  7. ground — crushed
  8. field — for sport
  9. snap — to click
  10. pass — to spend time
  11. rest — a break
  12. snap — to snap out of it
  13. rest — what's left
  14. rest — what's left
  15. ground — the earth
  16. snap — to speak sharply
  17. race — humankind
  18. squash — the sport
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. squash — the vegetable
  21. race — the arms race
  22. racket — a loud noise
  23. ground — a position
  24. squash — to crush

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