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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 116 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. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  9. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  10. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  11. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  12. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  13. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  14. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  15. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  16. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  17. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  18. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  19. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  22. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  23. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  24. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — the tool
  2. hand — help
  3. tear — from crying
  4. field — farmland
  5. field — for sport
  6. rock — a stone
  7. field — a subject
  8. drill — army training
  9. drill — a practice
  10. fork — in a road
  11. cue — a signal
  12. kick — in football
  13. kick — with a leg
  14. rock — to move gently
  15. kick — a thrill
  16. hand — in cards
  17. fork — a garden tool
  18. hand — part of the body
  19. rock — music
  20. tear — from crying
  21. cue — a hint
  22. tear — to rip
  23. fork — to eat with
  24. cue — for pool

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