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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: foot · pound · content · prune · present · game · field · drill

  1. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. That was a fun ________________.
  7. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  8. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  9. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  10. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  11. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  12. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  13. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  14. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  15. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  16. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  17. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  18. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  19. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  22. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  23. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  24. Check the label for the sugar ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — the tool
  2. field — for sport
  3. field — a subject
  4. foot — a measure
  5. game — wild animals
  6. game — a match
  7. present — there
  8. prune — the fruit
  9. drill — a practice
  10. prune — to trim
  11. present — the time now
  12. drill — army training
  13. present — a gift
  14. foot — part of the body
  15. foot — the bottom
  16. pound — for dogs
  17. game — a kind of play
  18. pound — to hit hard
  19. content — happy
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. field — farmland
  22. pound — a weight
  23. prune — to trim
  24. content — the amount

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