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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
468
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 · race · kick · coach · cap · tube · land · spell

  1. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  2. I'll be taking the ________________.
  3. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  4. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  5. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  6. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  7. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  8. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  9. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  13. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  14. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  15. Have you met the new head ________________?
  16. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  17. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  19. How do you ________________ your surname?
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  22. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  23. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  24. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a hat
  2. tube — the underground
  3. spell — magic
  4. cap — a lid
  5. race — a contest
  6. kick — in football
  7. cap — of ice
  8. race — humankind
  9. coach — pulled by horses
  10. field — farmland
  11. field — a subject
  12. tube — in a tire
  13. kick — a thrill
  14. land — ground
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. tube — a container
  17. land — a country
  18. field — for sport
  19. spell — letters
  20. land — to come down
  21. race — the arms race
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. kick — with a leg
  24. spell — a short time

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