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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. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  5. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  6. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  7. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  8. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  9. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  12. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  13. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  14. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  17. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  19. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  20. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  21. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  22. The King held a masked ________________.
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  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. capital — money
  2. hide — animal skin
  3. field — a subject
  4. cue — a signal
  5. cue — a hint
  6. foot — the bottom
  7. cue — for pool
  8. drill — a practice
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. march — the month
  11. drill — the tool
  12. foot — a measure
  13. ball — a great time
  14. ball — a round shape
  15. capital — a city
  16. drill — army training
  17. march — the month
  18. capital — a big letter
  19. march — music
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. foot — part of the body
  22. ball — a dance
  23. field — farmland
  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