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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: tube · saw · dip · field · suit · tear · staff · drill

  1. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  2. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  3. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  4. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  5. When will it ________________ you to start?
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. He works in a ________________ mill.
  8. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  9. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  10. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  11. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. She's very handy with a ________________.
  16. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  17. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  18. I'll be taking the ________________.
  19. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  20. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  21. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  22. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  23. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  24. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. suit — in cards
  3. suit — clothes
  4. saw — past of 'see'
  5. suit — to fit
  6. field — a subject
  7. saw — the tool
  8. tube — a container
  9. dip — a sauce
  10. dip — to dunk
  11. tube — in a tire
  12. tear — to rip
  13. staff — employees
  14. tear — from crying
  15. saw — the tool
  16. field — farmland
  17. tear — from crying
  18. tube — the underground
  19. dip — to sink
  20. drill — a practice
  21. staff — a stick
  22. drill — army training
  23. field — for sport
  24. drill — the tool

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