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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's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  2. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  7. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  8. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  15. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  16. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  17. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  18. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  19. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  20. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  21. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  22. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  23. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  24. She got the top ________________ in the exam.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a music group
  2. mine — belonging to me
  3. race — the arms race
  4. field — farmland
  5. field — a subject
  6. race — a contest
  7. bear — to put up with
  8. band — a ring
  9. tear — to rip
  10. field — for sport
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. tear — from crying
  13. tear — from crying
  14. bear — the animal
  15. mine — for digging
  16. mine — an explosive
  17. bear — the animal
  18. mark — a trace
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. band — a rubber band
  21. mark — to pay attention
  22. race — humankind
  23. racket — a loud noise
  24. mark — a grade

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