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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 stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  3. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  4. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  5. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  6. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  7. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  8. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  9. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  13. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  14. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  15. Have you met the new head ________________?
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  18. The ________________ went through the wall.
  19. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  20. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  21. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  22. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. object — to protest
  3. bore — to tire
  4. object — a thing
  5. pound — for dogs
  6. pound — a weight
  7. object — an aim
  8. cap — a hat
  9. cap — of ice
  10. wound — an injury
  11. field — farmland
  12. coach — pulled by horses
  13. pound — to hit hard
  14. bore — gave birth
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. wound — an injury
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. bore — to drill
  21. cap — a lid
  22. nail — on a finger
  23. field — a subject
  24. nail — for a hammer

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