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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: field · last · degree · dip · hand · mug · drill · tube

  1. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. I'll be taking the ________________.
  3. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  4. Where did you ________________ them?
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  9. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  12. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  13. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  14. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  15. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  16. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  19. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  22. False peace will not ________________.
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  24. Do you need a ________________ with that?

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. tube — the underground
  3. mug — a cup
  4. mug — to rob
  5. last — final
  6. drill — the tool
  7. degree — from a university
  8. drill — army training
  9. degree — an amount
  10. field — farmland
  11. tube — a container
  12. dip — to dunk
  13. field — for sport
  14. mug — a face
  15. hand — in cards
  16. tube — in a tire
  17. degree — temperature
  18. dip — a sauce
  19. dip — to sink
  20. field — a subject
  21. drill — a practice
  22. last — to go on
  23. hand — part of the body
  24. hand — help

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