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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: drill · ground · race · firm · plane · net · field · last

  1. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  7. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  8. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  9. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  12. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  13. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  14. The ________________ took off on time.
  15. There's no middle ________________.
  16. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  17. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  18. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  19. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  20. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  21. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  22. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  23. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  24. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. last — to go on
  3. field — a subject
  4. net — for catching
  5. field — farmland
  6. drill — army training
  7. ground — crushed
  8. plane — a tool
  9. race — a contest
  10. field — for sport
  11. drill — the tool
  12. race — the arms race
  13. firm — decided
  14. plane — an aircraft
  15. ground — a position
  16. plane — in geometry
  17. ground — the earth
  18. net — in sport
  19. last — final
  20. firm — steady
  21. drill — a practice
  22. firm — a company
  23. race — humankind
  24. net — after costs

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