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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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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: court · rash · kick · face · race · field · stand · mug

  1. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  6. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  7. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  8. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  9. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  10. Where did you ________________ them?
  11. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  12. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  13. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  16. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  17. Don't do anything ________________.
  18. I can't ________________ this cold.
  19. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  20. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  21. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  22. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  23. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  24. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of law
  2. field — farmland
  3. field — a subject
  4. court — for sport
  5. rash — on the skin
  6. court — of a king
  7. face — to confront
  8. race — a contest
  9. race — the arms race
  10. mug — to rob
  11. stand — for spectators
  12. stand — on your feet
  13. race — humankind
  14. field — for sport
  15. mug — a cup
  16. rash — a series
  17. rash — hasty
  18. stand — to bear
  19. face — to point toward
  20. kick — with a leg
  21. mug — a face
  22. face — part of the head
  23. kick — a thrill
  24. kick — in football

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