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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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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: lean · field · shower · race · tube · scale · current · sharp

  1. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  3. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  4. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  5. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  6. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  7. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  8. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  9. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  10. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  11. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  14. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  15. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  16. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  17. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  18. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  19. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  20. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  21. It's one o'clock ________________.
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. I'll be taking the ________________.
  24. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. race — the arms race
  3. lean — to rest against
  4. sharp — clever
  5. lean — thin
  6. shower — a meteor shower
  7. current — electric
  8. race — a contest
  9. sharp — with an edge
  10. current — of water
  11. field — for sport
  12. race — humankind
  13. lean — to bend
  14. tube — a container
  15. current — happening now
  16. shower — rain
  17. scale — in music
  18. scale — size or range
  19. shower — to wash
  20. scale — for weighing
  21. sharp — exactly
  22. field — a subject
  23. tube — the underground
  24. tube — in a tire

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