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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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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 · deal · kid · cabinet · field · net · tear · drill

  1. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  2. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  3. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  10. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  11. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  17. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  19. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  22. What do you think of the new ________________?
  23. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  24. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — to rip
  2. net — in sport
  3. drill — the tool
  4. kid — to tease
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. field — a subject
  7. deal — an agreement
  8. field — for sport
  9. deal — to handle
  10. net — for catching
  11. foot — part of the body
  12. tear — from crying
  13. net — after costs
  14. kid — child
  15. field — farmland
  16. deal — a big deal
  17. drill — a practice
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  19. foot — the bottom
  20. tear — from crying
  21. drill — army training
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. foot — a measure
  24. cabinet — a cupboard

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