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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: bore · race · chip · fall · march · field · rash · saw

  1. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  2. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  3. Don't do anything ________________.
  4. He works in a ________________ mill.
  5. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  6. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  9. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  10. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  11. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  14. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  15. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  16. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  17. She's very handy with a ________________.
  18. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  21. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  24. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chip — for betting
  2. march — music
  3. rash — hasty
  4. saw — the tool
  5. bore — gave birth
  6. fall — to drop
  7. march — the month
  8. fall — the season
  9. race — humankind
  10. rash — a series
  11. chip — to eat
  12. field — farmland
  13. race — the arms race
  14. fall — to drop
  15. saw — past of 'see'
  16. bore — to drill
  17. saw — the tool
  18. rash — on the skin
  19. march — the month
  20. bore — to tire
  21. chip — in a computer
  22. field — a subject
  23. race — a contest
  24. field — for sport

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