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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: net · field · stick · race · march · vault

  1. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  2. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  11. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  12. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  13. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  14. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. march — music
  2. race — humankind
  3. field — for sport
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. race — the arms race
  6. field — a subject
  7. vault — a safe
  8. march — the month
  9. field — farmland
  10. march — the month
  11. stick — to attach or keep to
  12. vault — in gymnastics
  13. vault — an arched ceiling
  14. net — in sport
  15. race — a contest
  16. net — after costs
  17. net — for catching
  18. stick — a piece of wood

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