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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. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  3. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  4. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  5. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  6. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  7. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  8. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  9. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  10. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  11. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  12. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  13. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  14. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  15. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  16. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  17. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  18. The ________________ took off on time.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  21. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. Don't do anything ________________.
  24. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. drill — army training
  3. drill — the tool
  4. bass — low music
  5. bass — the fish
  6. chest — of your body
  7. rash — a series
  8. plane — in geometry
  9. chest — a box
  10. drill — a practice
  11. bass — the instrument
  12. lean — to rest against
  13. calf — of the leg
  14. rash — on the skin
  15. chest — of your body
  16. lean — thin
  17. plane — a tool
  18. plane — an aircraft
  19. field — a subject
  20. calf — a young animal
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. field — farmland
  23. rash — hasty
  24. lean — to bend

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