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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. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  2. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  3. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  6. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  7. This piece is in a major ________________.
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  10. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  11. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. I can't ________________ this cold.
  16. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  17. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  18. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  19. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  20. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  21. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  22. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  23. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  24. He's taking a ________________ right now.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — steady
  2. dip — a sauce
  3. stand — for spectators
  4. field — a subject
  5. firm — a company
  6. shower — a meteor shower
  7. key — in music
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. stand — on your feet
  10. drill — a practice
  11. straw — dry grass
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. firm — decided
  14. shower — rain
  15. stand — to bear
  16. key — the most important part
  17. dip — to dunk
  18. drill — the tool
  19. field — farmland
  20. drill — army training
  21. dip — to sink
  22. field — for sport
  23. key — for a lock
  24. shower — to wash

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