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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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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. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  2. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  3. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  4. What do you think of the new ________________?
  5. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  6. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  7. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  8. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  9. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  10. There's no middle ________________.
  11. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  12. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  13. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  14. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  15. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  16. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  17. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  19. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  20. The ________________ went through the wall.
  21. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  24. He keeps ________________ of his days.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a song
  2. drill — the tool
  3. ground — crushed
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. cabinet — a cupboard
  6. drill — army training
  7. squash — the vegetable
  8. staff — employees
  9. staff — employees
  10. ground — a position
  11. squash — the sport
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. nail — on a finger
  14. track — a path
  15. field — a subject
  16. staff — a stick
  17. squash — to crush
  18. field — for sport
  19. ground — the earth
  20. nail — for a hammer
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. field — farmland
  23. drill — a practice
  24. track — to keep track

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