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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. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  2. That was a fun ________________.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  5. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  8. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  9. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  10. I can't ________________ this cold.
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  13. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  14. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  15. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  16. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  19. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  20. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  21. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  22. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  23. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — the tool
  2. game — a match
  3. field — a subject
  4. stand — on your feet
  5. jam — a tight spot
  6. field — for sport
  7. wax — for sculpting
  8. wax — to grow
  9. jam — in traffic
  10. stand — to bear
  11. field — farmland
  12. stem — a stem cell
  13. net — after costs
  14. drill — a practice
  15. jam — to spread on bread
  16. drill — army training
  17. net — in sport
  18. stem — of a plant
  19. net — for catching
  20. stand — for spectators
  21. game — wild animals
  22. wax — in the ear
  23. stem — to come from
  24. game — a kind of play

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