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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: date · spring · bowl · race · firm · bound · game · field

  1. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  2. That was a fun ________________.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  5. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  6. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  10. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  11. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  12. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  13. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  14. Have you settled on a ________________?
  15. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  16. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  19. That was ________________ to happen.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  22. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  23. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. race — the arms race
  2. game — a match
  3. spring — a coil
  4. bound — tied together
  5. firm — a company
  6. bowl — a football final
  7. field — farmland
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. bowl — to roll
  10. race — humankind
  11. bound — obliged
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. race — a contest
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. firm — decided
  16. bowl — a dish
  17. spring — of water
  18. game — wild animals
  19. bound — certain
  20. spring — the season
  21. field — for sport
  22. date — the fruit
  23. firm — steady
  24. field — a subject

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