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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: field · cap · race · band · lean · bass · fine · mug

  1. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  2. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  3. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  4. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  5. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  6. Where did you ________________ them?
  7. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  8. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  9. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  10. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  11. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  12. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  13. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  18. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  19. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  20. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  21. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  22. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  23. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  24. I assure you, everything's ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. race — a contest
  2. cap — of ice
  3. fine — a penalty
  4. band — a music group
  5. cap — a hat
  6. mug — to rob
  7. bass — low music
  8. fine — high quality
  9. lean — thin
  10. race — the arms race
  11. band — a ring
  12. cap — a lid
  13. mug — a cup
  14. field — a subject
  15. bass — the fish
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. lean — to bend
  18. lean — to rest against
  19. bass — the instrument
  20. race — humankind
  21. field — farmland
  22. field — for sport
  23. mug — a face
  24. fine — all right

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