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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. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. False peace will not ________________.
  5. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  6. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  7. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  8. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  13. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  14. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  15. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  16. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  17. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  18. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  19. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  20. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  21. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  22. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  23. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  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. mark — to pay attention
  2. field — for sport
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. last — to go on
  5. drill — army training
  6. drill — the tool
  7. ruler — for measuring
  8. lean — to rest against
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. last — finally
  11. last — final
  12. branch — of a bank
  13. mark — a trace
  14. mark — a grade
  15. field — a subject
  16. lean — to bend
  17. straw — dry grass
  18. branch — of a tree
  19. field — farmland
  20. ruler — a monarch
  21. ruler — for measuring
  22. branch — a division
  23. lean — thin
  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