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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: safe · ball · chair · tear · field · race

  1. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  2. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  3. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  4. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  9. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  10. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. The King held a masked ________________.
  13. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  14. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — out of danger
  2. race — the arms race
  3. ball — a round shape
  4. tear — from crying
  5. race — humankind
  6. field — for sport
  7. field — a subject
  8. chair — a leader
  9. chair — a professorship
  10. chair — to sit on
  11. field — farmland
  12. ball — a dance
  13. ball — a great time
  14. safe — out of danger
  15. tear — to rip
  16. race — a contest
  17. safe — a strongbox
  18. tear — from crying

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