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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. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  3. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  4. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  5. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  6. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  7. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  8. There's no middle ________________.
  9. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  10. How do you ________________ your surname?
  11. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  12. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  13. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  14. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  15. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  16. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  19. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  20. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  21. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  22. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  24. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — the tool
  2. drill — a practice
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. drill — army training
  6. perch — the fish
  7. wake — before a funeral
  8. ground — a position
  9. bowl — a football final
  10. spell — letters
  11. ground — the earth
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. field — for sport
  14. ground — crushed
  15. bowl — to roll
  16. bowl — a dish
  17. field — a subject
  18. spell — magic
  19. spell — a short time
  20. wake — to stop sleeping
  21. wake — a trail
  22. hide — animal skin
  23. field — farmland
  24. perch — for a bird

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