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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. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  4. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  5. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  6. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  7. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  8. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  9. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  10. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  11. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  12. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  16. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  17. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  18. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  19. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  22. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  23. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  24. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. net — in sport
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. bowl — a dish
  4. bore — to drill
  5. fall — to drop
  6. drill — a practice
  7. bowl — to roll
  8. net — for catching
  9. drill — army training
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. drill — the tool
  13. field — farmland
  14. capital — a city
  15. net — after costs
  16. fall — the season
  17. bore — to tire
  18. patient — calm and waiting
  19. fall — to drop
  20. field — a subject
  21. field — for sport
  22. bowl — a football final
  23. bore — gave birth
  24. capital — money

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