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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: field · sharp · rest · drill · cabinet · race · march · pit

  1. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  2. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  3. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  7. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  8. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  9. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  10. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  11. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. It's one o'clock ________________.
  14. What do you think of the new ________________?
  15. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  16. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  17. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  18. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  19. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  20. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  21. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  22. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  23. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  24. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.

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

Answer key

  1. race — humankind
  2. march — music
  3. pit — in a race
  4. field — farmland
  5. march — the month
  6. drill — the tool
  7. pit — a hole
  8. drill — army training
  9. sharp — clever
  10. drill — a practice
  11. rest — what's left
  12. field — a subject
  13. sharp — exactly
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. cabinet — a cupboard
  16. rest — a break
  17. pit — a fruit stone
  18. rest — what's left
  19. sharp — with an edge
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. field — for sport
  22. race — the arms race
  23. march — the month
  24. race — a contest

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