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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: row · drill · hand · deal · staff · face · field · vault

  1. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  2. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  5. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  9. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  10. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  11. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  12. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  13. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  14. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  17. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  20. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  21. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  22. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  23. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  24. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — a stick
  2. face — to point toward
  3. field — farmland
  4. face — part of the head
  5. vault — in gymnastics
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. hand — in cards
  8. row — a line
  9. drill — the tool
  10. staff — employees
  11. hand — help
  12. drill — a practice
  13. deal — an agreement
  14. row — a quarrel
  15. field — for sport
  16. deal — a big deal
  17. face — to confront
  18. field — a subject
  19. staff — employees
  20. vault — an arched ceiling
  21. deal — to handle
  22. row — to paddle
  23. vault — a safe
  24. drill — army training

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