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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. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  2. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  7. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  11. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  12. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  13. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  14. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  15. That was a fun ________________.
  16. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  19. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  20. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  21. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  22. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  23. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  24. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. race — a contest
  2. game — wild animals
  3. field — farmland
  4. board — a committee
  5. field — a subject
  6. fall — to drop
  7. chip — to eat
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. field — for sport
  10. fall — to drop
  11. stem — a stem cell
  12. chip — for betting
  13. fall — the season
  14. mark — to pay attention
  15. game — a match
  16. stem — to come from
  17. race — the arms race
  18. stem — of a plant
  19. chip — in a computer
  20. mark — a trace
  21. board — to get on
  22. board — a flat piece
  23. mark — a grade
  24. race — humankind

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