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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: wind · staff · cabinet · race · field · scale · cap · tear

  1. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  2. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  4. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  5. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  9. What do you think of the new ________________?
  10. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  13. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  14. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  15. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  19. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  20. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  21. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  22. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  23. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  24. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. race — the arms race
  2. race — a contest
  3. staff — employees
  4. field — for sport
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. tear — from crying
  7. tear — to rip
  8. cap — a hat
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. cabinet — a cupboard
  11. field — farmland
  12. staff — a stick
  13. cap — a lid
  14. scale — size or range
  15. wind — moving air
  16. tear — from crying
  17. field — a subject
  18. scale — in music
  19. staff — employees
  20. cap — of ice
  21. wind — moving air
  22. wind — to turn a key
  23. scale — for weighing
  24. race — humankind

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