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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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Word bank
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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: fall · pop · race · fork · craft · field

  1. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  5. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  6. We're almost out of ________________.
  7. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  8. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  9. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  10. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  14. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  15. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  16. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  17. You don't need to ________________ round.
  18. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. race — humankind
  3. field — a subject
  4. fall — the season
  5. craft — a skill
  6. pop — soda
  7. craft — a handicraft
  8. pop — music
  9. fork — a garden tool
  10. fall — to drop
  11. race — the arms race
  12. field — farmland
  13. race — a contest
  14. fork — to eat with
  15. fall — to drop
  16. craft — boats
  17. pop — to visit
  18. fork — in a road

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