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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. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  4. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  5. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  6. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  7. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  11. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  12. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  17. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  18. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  19. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  20. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  21. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  22. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  24. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — a practice
  2. game — wild animals
  3. bank — of a river
  4. shower — a meteor shower
  5. fall — to drop
  6. bank — for money
  7. fall — to drop
  8. field — for sport
  9. game — a match
  10. club — for golf
  11. drill — army training
  12. club — a group
  13. field — a subject
  14. club — for dancing
  15. shower — rain
  16. craft — a handicraft
  17. game — a kind of play
  18. shower — to wash
  19. craft — a skill
  20. drill — the tool
  21. craft — boats
  22. fall — the season
  23. field — farmland
  24. bank — for money

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