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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.

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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: suit · field · drill · foot · press · wind · race · ground

  1. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  2. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  3. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  4. When will it ________________ you to start?
  5. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  9. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  10. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  13. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  14. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  15. There's no middle ________________.
  16. Did you ________________ the button?
  17. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  18. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  22. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  23. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  24. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.

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

Answer key

  1. race — humankind
  2. drill — the tool
  3. press — a publisher
  4. suit — to fit
  5. wind — moving air
  6. field — a subject
  7. wind — moving air
  8. press — newspapers
  9. ground — the earth
  10. foot — a measure
  11. race — the arms race
  12. ground — crushed
  13. suit — in cards
  14. wind — to turn a key
  15. ground — a position
  16. press — to push
  17. drill — army training
  18. foot — part of the body
  19. field — for sport
  20. field — farmland
  21. race — a contest
  22. foot — the bottom
  23. drill — a practice
  24. suit — clothes

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