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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. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  5. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  6. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  11. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  12. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  13. The ________________ went through the wall.
  14. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  15. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  16. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  17. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  18. This piece is in a major ________________.
  19. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  20. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  21. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  22. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  23. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  24. He is an ace ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. nail — on a finger
  5. track — a song
  6. track — to keep track
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. track — a path
  9. field — a subject
  10. pound — to hit hard
  11. bowl — to roll
  12. bowl — a dish
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. mine — for digging
  16. pound — a weight
  17. key — for a lock
  18. key — in music
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. key — the most important part
  21. pound — for dogs
  22. field — for sport
  23. bowl — a football final
  24. pitcher — in baseball

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