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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 120 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. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  2. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  3. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  4. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  5. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  6. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  7. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  8. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  9. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  10. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  11. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  12. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  13. You don't need to ________________ round.
  14. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  15. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  16. We're almost out of ________________.
  17. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  18. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  19. It's one o'clock ________________.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  22. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  23. I can't ________________ this cold.
  24. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. stand — for spectators
  4. sharp — with an edge
  5. drill — a practice
  6. drill — army training
  7. rest — what's left
  8. sharp — clever
  9. fork — a garden tool
  10. fork — to eat with
  11. racket — a loud noise
  12. drill — the tool
  13. pop — to visit
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. fork — in a road
  16. pop — soda
  17. rest — a break
  18. stand — on your feet
  19. sharp — exactly
  20. field — farmland
  21. pop — music
  22. rest — what's left
  23. stand — to bear
  24. field — for sport

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