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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. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  4. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  5. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  8. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  11. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  16. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  17. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  18. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  19. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  20. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  21. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  22. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  23. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  24. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the fish
  2. field — a subject
  3. track — to keep track
  4. track — a song
  5. bank — for money
  6. field — farmland
  7. kick — a thrill
  8. bank — for money
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. ruler — a monarch
  11. bass — low music
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. ruler — for measuring
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. drill — the tool
  16. bank — of a river
  17. kick — with a leg
  18. kick — in football
  19. drill — a practice
  20. track — a path
  21. drill — army training
  22. bass — the instrument
  23. ruler — for measuring
  24. field — for sport

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