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

Word bank: rock · dip · last · game · race · field

  1. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  3. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  4. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  5. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  9. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  10. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  11. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  16. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  17. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  18. False peace will not ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. rock — music
  3. dip — a sauce
  4. race — humankind
  5. rock — to move gently
  6. field — farmland
  7. game — a match
  8. race — a contest
  9. game — wild animals
  10. rock — a stone
  11. dip — to sink
  12. last — finally
  13. game — a kind of play
  14. last — final
  15. field — a subject
  16. race — the arms race
  17. dip — to dunk
  18. last — to go on

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