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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: present · race · season · rest · fan · scale · mouse · field

  1. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  2. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  3. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  4. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  5. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  6. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  7. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  8. Did you ________________ the meat?
  9. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  10. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  11. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  12. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  13. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  14. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  15. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  16. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  17. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  18. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  19. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  20. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  21. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  24. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.

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

Answer key

  1. race — a contest
  2. present — a gift
  3. scale — for weighing
  4. season — of the year
  5. scale — size or range
  6. rest — what's left
  7. rest — what's left
  8. season — to add flavour
  9. present — the time now
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. race — humankind
  12. mouse — for a computer
  13. field — for sport
  14. fan — to cool the air
  15. season — in sport
  16. race — the arms race
  17. mouse — the animal
  18. rest — a break
  19. scale — in music
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. present — there
  22. field — a subject
  23. field — farmland
  24. mouse — the animal

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