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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 120 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
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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 · scale · bass · ground · game · race · cell · object

  1. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  2. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  5. There's no middle ________________.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  8. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  9. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  10. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  13. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  14. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  15. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  16. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  17. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  18. That was a fun ________________.
  19. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  22. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  23. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  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. game — a kind of play
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. cell — a phone
  4. cell — in biology
  5. ground — a position
  6. field — farmland
  7. object — to protest
  8. ground — the earth
  9. scale — size or range
  10. object — an aim
  11. race — the arms race
  12. ground — crushed
  13. bass — the instrument
  14. scale — for weighing
  15. bass — low music
  16. bass — the fish
  17. race — humankind
  18. game — a match
  19. object — a thing
  20. field — a subject
  21. race — a contest
  22. game — wild animals
  23. scale — in music
  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