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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. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  4. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  5. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  6. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  7. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  8. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  9. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  10. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  11. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  12. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  13. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  14. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  15. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  16. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  21. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  22. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  23. The ________________ went through the wall.
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — on a finger
  2. field — for sport
  3. rock — a stone
  4. mine — belonging to me
  5. band — a rubber band
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. mine — an explosive
  8. face — to point toward
  9. band — a music group
  10. rock — to move gently
  11. pound — a weight
  12. rock — music
  13. racket — a loud noise
  14. pound — to hit hard
  15. mine — for digging
  16. face — to confront
  17. band — a ring
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. field — a subject
  20. pound — for dogs
  21. face — part of the head
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. field — farmland

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