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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. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  4. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  5. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  6. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  9. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  10. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  11. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  12. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  15. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  16. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  17. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  18. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  19. Did you ________________ the button?
  20. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  21. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  22. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  23. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  24. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — to tire
  2. field — for sport
  3. rest — what's left
  4. track — to keep track
  5. straw — to clutch at straws
  6. bore — to drill
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. track — a path
  9. drill — a practice
  10. branch — of a bank
  11. drill — the tool
  12. rest — what's left
  13. field — a subject
  14. bore — gave birth
  15. track — a song
  16. branch — a division
  17. field — farmland
  18. rest — a break
  19. press — to push
  20. straw — a straw man
  21. press — newspapers
  22. press — a publisher
  23. branch — of a tree
  24. drill — army training

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