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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. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  5. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. Did you ________________ the meat?
  8. The ball is in your ________________.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  11. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  12. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  15. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  16. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  22. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  23. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  24. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?

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

Answer key

  1. drill — a practice
  2. degree — from a university
  3. degree — an amount
  4. drill — the tool
  5. toast — a drink to someone
  6. field — for sport
  7. season — to add flavour
  8. court — for sport
  9. field — farmland
  10. toast — bread
  11. toast — the most admired
  12. court — of law
  13. degree — temperature
  14. season — in sport
  15. last — final
  16. season — of the year
  17. last — to go on
  18. last — finally
  19. field — a subject
  20. court — of a king
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. drill — army training
  23. fan — to cool the air
  24. fan — a supporter

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