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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 ________________ took off on time.
  2. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  3. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  4. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  5. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  9. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  10. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  16. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  17. My father caught me by the ________________.
  18. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  19. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  20. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  21. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  22. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  23. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  24. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.

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

Answer key

  1. plane — an aircraft
  2. drill — army training
  3. track — a path
  4. row — a quarrel
  5. track — to keep track
  6. field — a subject
  7. row — a line
  8. track — a song
  9. drill — the tool
  10. plane — a tool
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. wind — moving air
  13. field — for sport
  14. wind — moving air
  15. wake — a trail
  16. plane — in geometry
  17. arm — part of the body
  18. row — to paddle
  19. field — farmland
  20. drill — a practice
  21. arm — a part of something
  22. wake — to stop sleeping
  23. wake — before a funeral
  24. arm — part of the body

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