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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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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: calf · key · pitch · kid · press · bore · field · race

  1. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  3. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  4. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  5. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  6. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  7. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  8. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  11. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  12. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  13. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  14. Did you ________________ the button?
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  17. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  19. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  20. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  21. This piece is in a major ________________.
  22. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  23. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  24. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. race — the arms race
  3. key — the most important part
  4. kid — child
  5. calf — a young animal
  6. press — a publisher
  7. race — a contest
  8. pitch — a sales talk
  9. field — a subject
  10. calf — a young animal
  11. kid — to tease
  12. key — for a lock
  13. bore — gave birth
  14. press — to push
  15. race — humankind
  16. pitch — completely
  17. calf — of the leg
  18. field — for sport
  19. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  20. pitch — a sports field
  21. key — in music
  22. bore — to drill
  23. bore — to tire
  24. press — newspapers

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