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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. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  5. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  6. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  7. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  8. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  9. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  10. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  11. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  12. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  13. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  14. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  17. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  20. Did you ________________ the button?
  21. Have you met the new head ________________?
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  24. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — a practice
  2. field — for sport
  3. cold — an illness
  4. craft — boats
  5. band — a rubber band
  6. press — a publisher
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. field — a subject
  9. drill — the tool
  10. coach — pulled by horses
  11. band — a ring
  12. craft — a skill
  13. drill — army training
  14. vault — an arched ceiling
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. vault — a safe
  17. vault — in gymnastics
  18. cold — not warm
  19. craft — a handicraft
  20. press — to push
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. field — farmland
  23. band — a music group
  24. press — newspapers

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