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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 soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  2. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  3. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  4. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  5. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  8. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  9. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  10. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  13. Have you found your soul ________________?
  14. Did you ________________ the button?
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  17. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  18. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  19. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  20. The ________________ took off on time.
  21. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  22. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  23. That was ________________ to happen.
  24. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — army training
  2. deal — a big deal
  3. mate — to breed
  4. mate — a friend
  5. press — newspapers
  6. field — for sport
  7. deal — to handle
  8. prune — to trim
  9. press — a publisher
  10. prune — the fruit
  11. field — a subject
  12. bound — obliged
  13. mate — a partner
  14. press — to push
  15. field — farmland
  16. drill — a practice
  17. prune — to trim
  18. drill — the tool
  19. deal — an agreement
  20. plane — an aircraft
  21. bound — tied together
  22. plane — in geometry
  23. bound — certain
  24. plane — a 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