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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. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  2. Don't do anything ________________.
  3. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  4. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  7. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  8. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  9. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  10. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  11. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  12. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  13. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  14. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  15. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  16. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  17. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  18. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  19. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  20. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  24. He keeps ________________ of his days.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — the most admired
  2. rash — hasty
  3. root — of a plant
  4. bore — to tire
  5. field — for sport
  6. rash — a series
  7. mark — a trace
  8. bore — to drill
  9. bore — gave birth
  10. toast — bread
  11. rash — on the skin
  12. mark — a grade
  13. root — of a word
  14. mark — to pay attention
  15. drill — the tool
  16. root — the cause
  17. track — a path
  18. drill — army training
  19. toast — a drink to someone
  20. drill — a practice
  21. field — a subject
  22. track — a song
  23. field — farmland
  24. track — to keep track

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