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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. The tickets are free of ________________.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  5. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  6. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  7. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  8. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  9. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  10. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  11. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  14. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  18. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  21. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  22. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — a price
  2. field — for sport
  3. field — a subject
  4. pit — in a race
  5. board — a committee
  6. trunk — of a tree
  7. trunk — of a car
  8. charge — in control
  9. tear — from crying
  10. drill — a practice
  11. trunk — of an elephant
  12. tear — to rip
  13. drill — the tool
  14. charge — electricity
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. tear — from crying
  17. shower — to wash
  18. pit — a hole
  19. shower — rain
  20. pit — a fruit stone
  21. board — a flat piece
  22. board — to get on
  23. drill — army training
  24. field — farmland

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