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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: ground · field · lash · present · rush · cell · season · race

  1. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  3. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  4. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  7. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  8. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  11. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  12. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  13. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  17. There's no middle ________________.
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.
  19. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  20. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  21. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  22. That must've been a ________________.
  23. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  24. Did you ________________ the meat?

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. rush — to hurry
  3. race — the arms race
  4. rush — hurry
  5. field — a subject
  6. ground — the earth
  7. present — a gift
  8. lash — to lash out
  9. cell — a phone
  10. season — of the year
  11. cell — in biology
  12. lash — a whip stroke
  13. race — a contest
  14. field — farmland
  15. race — humankind
  16. lash — an eyelash
  17. ground — a position
  18. cell — in a prison
  19. ground — crushed
  20. present — the time now
  21. present — there
  22. rush — a thrill
  23. season — in sport
  24. season — to add flavour

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