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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: racket · field · nail · wave · capital · race

  1. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  3. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. The ________________ went through the wall.
  6. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  7. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  8. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  9. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  17. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  18. He hit the ball with his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. nail — on a finger
  3. race — the arms race
  4. capital — money
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. race — a contest
  8. wave — with your hand
  9. wave — a sudden rise
  10. field — a subject
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. racket — a loud noise
  13. capital — a city
  14. race — humankind
  15. field — for sport
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. wave — of the sea
  18. racket — for tennis

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