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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 116 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. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  4. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  5. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  6. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  7. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  8. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  9. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  13. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  14. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. The ________________ market has crashed.
  17. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  18. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  19. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  20. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  21. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  22. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  23. I'll be taking the ________________.
  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. field — a subject
  2. field — for sport
  3. trunk — of a tree
  4. stock — goods
  5. chair — a professorship
  6. chair — to sit on
  7. drill — the tool
  8. shower — rain
  9. trunk — of a car
  10. field — farmland
  11. hand — in cards
  12. stock — a soup base
  13. hand — help
  14. trunk — of an elephant
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. stock — shares
  17. chair — a leader
  18. shower — a meteor shower
  19. drill — a practice
  20. drill — army training
  21. tube — a container
  22. tube — in a tire
  23. tube — the underground
  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