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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: key · band · current · cell · plane · lie · field · race

  1. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  2. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  3. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  4. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  5. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  6. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  7. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  8. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  9. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  10. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  11. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  12. The ________________ took off on time.
  13. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  14. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  15. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  16. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  17. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.
  19. This piece is in a major ________________.
  20. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  21. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  22. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  23. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — a phone
  2. band — a ring
  3. race — humankind
  4. field — for sport
  5. race — a contest
  6. current — electric
  7. plane — in geometry
  8. plane — a tool
  9. race — the arms race
  10. band — a music group
  11. current — happening now
  12. plane — an aircraft
  13. cell — in biology
  14. band — a rubber band
  15. lie — an untruth
  16. field — farmland
  17. lie — an untruth
  18. cell — in a prison
  19. key — in music
  20. current — of water
  21. key — for a lock
  22. key — the most important part
  23. lie — to recline
  24. field — a subject

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