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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. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  3. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  4. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  5. David sat on the ________________.
  6. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  7. That must've been a ________________.
  8. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  11. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  12. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  13. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  14. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  15. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  16. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  19. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  20. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  21. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  22. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  23. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  24. We had a fire ________________ at school today.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. drill — army training
  3. scale — for weighing
  4. squash — the sport
  5. swing — to play on
  6. squash — to crush
  7. rush — a thrill
  8. rush — to hurry
  9. field — for sport
  10. scale — in music
  11. swing — music
  12. scale — size or range
  13. fork — a garden tool
  14. squash — the vegetable
  15. fork — to eat with
  16. fork — in a road
  17. field — a subject
  18. pitch — a sales talk
  19. pitch — completely
  20. pitch — a sports field
  21. drill — the tool
  22. rush — hurry
  23. swing — in golf
  24. drill — a practice

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