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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: march · cell · bulb · drill · pound · object · scale · field

  1. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  2. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  3. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  4. The light ________________ burned out.
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  12. I've got to change the light ________________.
  13. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  14. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  15. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  21. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  24. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — a weight
  2. drill — a practice
  3. object — to protest
  4. bulb — for light
  5. march — the month
  6. march — music
  7. cell — a phone
  8. field — for sport
  9. object — a thing
  10. cell — in biology
  11. pound — for dogs
  12. bulb — for light
  13. bulb — of a plant
  14. scale — in music
  15. scale — size or range
  16. field — a subject
  17. drill — army training
  18. cell — in a prison
  19. march — the month
  20. object — an aim
  21. drill — the tool
  22. field — farmland
  23. pound — to hit hard
  24. scale — for weighing

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