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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. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  2. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. We're almost out of ________________.
  7. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  8. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  9. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  10. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  11. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  16. He is an ace ________________.
  17. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  18. You don't need to ________________ round.
  19. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  20. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  21. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  22. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  23. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. drill — the tool
  3. field — farmland
  4. pop — music
  5. wind — moving air
  6. pop — soda
  7. leaves — of a tree
  8. drill — army training
  9. wind — to turn a key
  10. drill — a practice
  11. squash — the vegetable
  12. wind — moving air
  13. staff — a stick
  14. field — for sport
  15. staff — employees
  16. pitcher — in baseball
  17. leaves — lets stay
  18. pop — to visit
  19. squash — the sport
  20. squash — to crush
  21. staff — employees
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. leaves — to go away
  24. field — a subject

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