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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. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  2. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  3. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  4. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  5. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  10. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  13. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  14. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  17. That was a fun ________________.
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  20. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  21. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  22. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  23. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  24. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — a practice
  2. branch — a division
  3. branch — of a bank
  4. drill — the tool
  5. drill — army training
  6. field — a subject
  7. game — wild animals
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. current — of water
  10. branch — of a tree
  11. degree — an amount
  12. content — the amount
  13. current — happening now
  14. staff — a stick
  15. degree — temperature
  16. field — farmland
  17. game — a match
  18. degree — from a university
  19. staff — employees
  20. current — electric
  21. content — happy
  22. staff — employees
  23. content — videos and posts
  24. field — for sport

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