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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: race · season · field · foot · jam · bat · bear · sharp

  1. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  2. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  3. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  4. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  5. It's one o'clock ________________.
  6. Did you ________________ the meat?
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  12. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  13. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  14. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  15. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  16. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  17. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  18. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  19. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  20. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  21. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  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. sharp — with an edge
  2. race — the arms race
  3. sharp — clever
  4. race — humankind
  5. sharp — exactly
  6. season — to add flavour
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. field — for sport
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. bat — the animal
  11. jam — to spread on bread
  12. foot — part of the body
  13. bear — the animal
  14. foot — the bottom
  15. foot — a measure
  16. season — in sport
  17. season — of the year
  18. bear — the animal
  19. race — a contest
  20. bear — to put up with
  21. jam — in traffic
  22. field — farmland
  23. jam — a tight spot
  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