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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. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  5. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  6. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  7. We're almost out of ________________.
  8. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  9. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  14. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  15. The ________________ went through the wall.
  16. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  17. You don't need to ________________ round.
  18. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  19. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  20. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  21. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  22. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  23. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  24. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. pop — music
  3. field — farmland
  4. bowl — a football final
  5. nail — on a finger
  6. bowl — a dish
  7. pop — soda
  8. pound — to hit hard
  9. bowl — to roll
  10. degree — an amount
  11. mine — for digging
  12. field — a subject
  13. pound — a weight
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. board — a flat piece
  17. pop — to visit
  18. degree — temperature
  19. board — a committee
  20. mine — belonging to me
  21. pound — for dogs
  22. field — for sport
  23. board — to get on
  24. degree — from a university

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