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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 need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  2. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  3. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  4. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  5. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  6. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  7. I've got to change the light ________________.
  8. False peace will not ________________.
  9. The light ________________ burned out.
  10. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  11. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  12. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  13. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  14. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  15. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  18. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  19. Have you settled on a ________________?
  20. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  21. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  22. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  23. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  24. That was a fun ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — the tool
  2. drill — army training
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. pound — a weight
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. degree — an amount
  7. bulb — for light
  8. last — to go on
  9. bulb — for light
  10. pound — to hit hard
  11. bulb — of a plant
  12. pound — for dogs
  13. last — finally
  14. game — a kind of play
  15. drill — a practice
  16. game — wild animals
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. date — the fruit
  19. date — on the calendar
  20. last — final
  21. degree — from a university
  22. degree — temperature
  23. patient — calm and waiting
  24. game — a match

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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