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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: rock · calf · tear · chest · mark · race · field · pop

  1. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  2. We're almost out of ________________.
  3. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  10. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  11. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  14. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  15. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  16. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  17. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  18. You don't need to ________________ round.
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  22. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  23. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  24. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.

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

Answer key

  1. race — a contest
  2. pop — soda
  3. mark — a grade
  4. tear — to rip
  5. field — farmland
  6. mark — a trace
  7. race — humankind
  8. chest — of your body
  9. chest — a box
  10. race — the arms race
  11. chest — of your body
  12. field — a subject
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. rock — a stone
  15. mark — to pay attention
  16. calf — of the leg
  17. rock — music
  18. pop — to visit
  19. tear — from crying
  20. field — for sport
  21. pop — music
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. rock — to move gently
  24. tear — from crying

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