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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. He works in a ________________ mill.
  2. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  3. Don't do anything ________________.
  4. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  5. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  6. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  7. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  8. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  12. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  13. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  14. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  15. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  16. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  17. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  18. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  19. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  20. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  21. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  22. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  23. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  24. She's very handy with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. wake — before a funeral
  3. rash — hasty
  4. face — part of the head
  5. drill — the tool
  6. wake — to stop sleeping
  7. rash — on the skin
  8. wave — with your hand
  9. field — a subject
  10. field — for sport
  11. net — for catching
  12. drill — a practice
  13. face — to confront
  14. drill — army training
  15. face — to point toward
  16. field — farmland
  17. saw — past of 'see'
  18. rash — a series
  19. wave — of the sea
  20. net — in sport
  21. wave — a sudden rise
  22. wake — a trail
  23. net — after costs
  24. saw — the tool

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