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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: field · pitch · pop · calf · leaves · race · land · last

  1. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  2. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  5. You don't need to ________________ round.
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. We're almost out of ________________.
  8. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  11. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  12. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  13. When are we going to ________________?
  14. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  17. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  18. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  19. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  20. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  21. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  22. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  23. False peace will not ________________.
  24. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. race — the arms race
  3. field — farmland
  4. race — a contest
  5. pop — to visit
  6. last — final
  7. pop — soda
  8. leaves — to go away
  9. land — ground
  10. pitch — a sports field
  11. pop — music
  12. land — a country
  13. land — to come down
  14. calf — of the leg
  15. last — finally
  16. pitch — completely
  17. pitch — a sales talk
  18. leaves — lets stay
  19. leaves — of a tree
  20. race — humankind
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. field — for sport
  23. last — to go on
  24. calf — a young animal

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