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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. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. The ________________ went through the wall.
  3. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  4. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  5. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  6. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  7. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  8. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  9. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  10. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  11. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  12. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  15. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  16. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  17. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  18. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  19. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  20. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  21. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  24. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. snap — to snap out of it
  4. shower — rain
  5. shower — to wash
  6. kick — in football
  7. kick — a thrill
  8. field — a subject
  9. snap — to speak sharply
  10. nail — on a finger
  11. leaves — lets stay
  12. drill — the tool
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. leaves — of a tree
  15. drill — a practice
  16. stem — to come from
  17. drill — army training
  18. stem — a stem cell
  19. stem — of a plant
  20. snap — to click
  21. leaves — to go away
  22. field — farmland
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. kick — with a leg

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