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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: cue · race · row · object · game · drill · scale · field

  1. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  2. That was a fun ________________.
  3. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  6. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  7. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  8. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  9. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  10. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  11. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  12. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  13. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  14. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  15. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  16. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  17. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  18. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  19. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  20. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  21. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  22. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  23. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  24. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. row — to paddle
  2. game — a match
  3. row — a quarrel
  4. field — a subject
  5. scale — for weighing
  6. row — a line
  7. cue — a hint
  8. object — to protest
  9. cue — a signal
  10. game — wild animals
  11. scale — in music
  12. cue — for pool
  13. game — a kind of play
  14. race — humankind
  15. drill — army training
  16. object — a thing
  17. drill — the tool
  18. field — farmland
  19. scale — size or range
  20. drill — a practice
  21. race — the arms race
  22. object — an aim
  23. race — a contest
  24. field — for sport

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