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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: arm · patient · field · squash · rash · land · race · key

  1. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  2. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  3. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  4. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  9. Don't do anything ________________.
  10. This piece is in a major ________________.
  11. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  14. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. My father caught me by the ________________.
  17. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  22. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  23. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  24. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. key — for a lock
  3. land — ground
  4. rash — a series
  5. land — a country
  6. arm — a part of something
  7. field — farmland
  8. rash — on the skin
  9. rash — hasty
  10. key — in music
  11. squash — the vegetable
  12. field — for sport
  13. patient — calm and waiting
  14. arm — part of the body
  15. race — humankind
  16. arm — part of the body
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. race — a contest
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. land — to come down
  21. race — the arms race
  22. key — the most important part
  23. squash — the sport
  24. squash — to crush

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