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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. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  2. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  3. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  4. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  5. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  6. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  7. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  8. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  9. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  10. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  11. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  12. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  13. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  16. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  17. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  18. She's very handy with a ________________.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  21. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  22. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  23. He works in a ________________ mill.
  24. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for dancing
  2. stem — to come from
  3. pass — a permit
  4. drill — a practice
  5. pass — to spend time
  6. chest — a box
  7. saw — past of 'see'
  8. drill — army training
  9. pass — to succeed
  10. drill — the tool
  11. club — for golf
  12. chest — of your body
  13. club — a group
  14. field — farmland
  15. mark — a grade
  16. stem — a stem cell
  17. mark — a trace
  18. saw — the tool
  19. field — a subject
  20. chest — of your body
  21. field — for sport
  22. mark — to pay attention
  23. saw — the tool
  24. stem — of a plant

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