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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. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  4. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  9. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  10. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  11. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. That was a fun ________________.
  14. We're on a ________________ here.
  15. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  16. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  19. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  20. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  21. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  22. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  23. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  24. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — a practice
  2. field — a subject
  3. leaves — to go away
  4. roll — a list
  5. game — wild animals
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. field — for sport
  8. foot — the bottom
  9. bear — the animal
  10. bear — to put up with
  11. roll — a cake
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. game — a match
  14. roll — on a roll
  15. drill — army training
  16. leaves — lets stay
  17. hand — help
  18. field — farmland
  19. foot — part of the body
  20. bear — the animal
  21. hand — in cards
  22. foot — a measure
  23. leaves — of a tree
  24. drill — the tool

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