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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: current · tear · race · cap · lash · dip · field · mate

  1. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  2. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  4. Have you found your soul ________________?
  5. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  8. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  9. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  10. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  11. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  12. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  16. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  17. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  18. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  19. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  20. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  21. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  22. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  23. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  24. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?

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

Answer key

  1. current — of water
  2. race — a contest
  3. dip — to dunk
  4. mate — a partner
  5. current — happening now
  6. field — farmland
  7. cap — of ice
  8. race — humankind
  9. race — the arms race
  10. tear — to rip
  11. lash — to lash out
  12. dip — a sauce
  13. field — a subject
  14. tear — from crying
  15. dip — to sink
  16. current — electric
  17. mate — to breed
  18. cap — a hat
  19. cap — a lid
  20. lash — a whip stroke
  21. tear — from crying
  22. lash — an eyelash
  23. field — for sport
  24. mate — a friend

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