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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 120 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. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  3. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  4. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. That was ________________ to happen.
  7. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  10. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  11. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  12. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  13. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  14. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  15. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  16. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  17. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  18. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  19. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  20. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  21. This piece is in a major ________________.
  22. How do you ________________ your surname?
  23. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  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. field — farmland
  2. spell — a short time
  3. bound — obliged
  4. chip — in a computer
  5. field — for sport
  6. bound — certain
  7. key — the most important part
  8. race — the arms race
  9. chip — to eat
  10. fine — all right
  11. prune — to trim
  12. fine — high quality
  13. key — for a lock
  14. prune — to trim
  15. field — a subject
  16. bound — tied together
  17. race — a contest
  18. spell — magic
  19. fine — a penalty
  20. prune — the fruit
  21. key — in music
  22. spell — letters
  23. chip — for betting
  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