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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. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  2. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  5. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  6. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  7. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  8. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  9. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  10. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  11. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  12. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  13. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  14. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  15. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  16. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  17. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  19. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  20. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  21. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  22. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. We had a fire ________________ at school today.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — a weight
  2. wake — to stop sleeping
  3. field — a subject
  4. cap — a hat
  5. cue — a signal
  6. drill — army training
  7. cap — of ice
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. racket — a loud noise
  10. cue — for pool
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. wake — before a funeral
  13. cap — a lid
  14. pound — for dogs
  15. pound — to hit hard
  16. cue — a hint
  17. row — a line
  18. field — for sport
  19. field — farmland
  20. drill — the tool
  21. row — a quarrel
  22. row — to paddle
  23. wake — a trail
  24. drill — a practice

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