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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. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  2. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  5. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  8. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  9. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  12. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  13. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  16. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  17. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  18. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  19. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  20. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  21. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  22. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  23. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  24. He's taking a ________________ right now.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — to sit on
  2. cue — for pool
  3. field — farmland
  4. drill — the tool
  5. shower — rain
  6. field — for sport
  7. can — a tin
  8. can — a tin
  9. cue — a signal
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. drill — army training
  12. wave — a sudden rise
  13. cue — a hint
  14. field — a subject
  15. scale — size or range
  16. chair — a professorship
  17. wave — of the sea
  18. chair — a leader
  19. wave — with your hand
  20. scale — in music
  21. can — to be able to
  22. drill — a practice
  23. scale — for weighing
  24. shower — to wash

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