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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 party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  4. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  7. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  8. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  9. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  10. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  11. Have you met the new head ________________?
  12. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  13. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  14. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  15. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  16. Don't do anything ________________.
  17. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  18. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  19. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  20. He was locked up in a ________________.
  21. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  22. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  23. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  24. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — a series
  2. field — a subject
  3. board — a flat piece
  4. field — for sport
  5. cell — a phone
  6. drill — the tool
  7. board — a committee
  8. rest — what's left
  9. pound — to hit hard
  10. rest — what's left
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. cell — in biology
  13. board — to get on
  14. drill — army training
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. rash — hasty
  17. coach — pulled by horses
  18. rash — on the skin
  19. drill — a practice
  20. cell — in a prison
  21. field — farmland
  22. rest — a break
  23. pound — a weight
  24. pound — for dogs

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