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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. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  2. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  5. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  9. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  12. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  13. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  18. That was a fun ________________.
  19. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  20. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  21. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  22. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  23. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  24. The tickets are free of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. bore — to tire
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. club — for dancing
  5. pass — to spend time
  6. field — for sport
  7. tear — from crying
  8. charge — in control
  9. club — for golf
  10. field — farmland
  11. charge — electricity
  12. club — a group
  13. bore — to drill
  14. tear — from crying
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. tear — to rip
  17. pass — a permit
  18. game — a match
  19. hand — in cards
  20. game — wild animals
  21. pass — to succeed
  22. hand — help
  23. bore — gave birth
  24. charge — a price

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