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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 120 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 ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  4. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  5. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  6. The ________________ took off on time.
  7. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. He works in a ________________ mill.
  10. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  13. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  14. The tickets are free of ________________.
  15. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  18. She's very handy with a ________________.
  19. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  20. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  21. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  24. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — past of 'see'
  2. field — for sport
  3. club — for golf
  4. charge — electricity
  5. club — a group
  6. plane — an aircraft
  7. fall — to drop
  8. wind — moving air
  9. saw — the tool
  10. drill — a practice
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. plane — in geometry
  13. plane — a tool
  14. charge — a price
  15. fall — the season
  16. field — a subject
  17. club — for dancing
  18. saw — the tool
  19. drill — the tool
  20. charge — in control
  21. drill — army training
  22. field — farmland
  23. wind — moving air
  24. fall — to drop

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