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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 · field · pop · march · saw · fine · nail · fan

  1. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  3. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. We're almost out of ________________.
  6. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  7. The ________________ went through the wall.
  8. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  9. He works in a ________________ mill.
  10. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  11. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  12. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  13. You don't need to ________________ round.
  14. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  15. She's very handy with a ________________.
  16. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  19. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  20. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  21. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  22. I'll be taking the ________________.
  23. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  24. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. pop — music
  3. fine — all right
  4. field — farmland
  5. pop — soda
  6. fine — high quality
  7. nail — for a hammer
  8. march — the month
  9. saw — the tool
  10. march — music
  11. tube — a container
  12. nail — on a finger
  13. pop — to visit
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. saw — the tool
  16. fan — to cool the air
  17. field — a subject
  18. fine — a penalty
  19. march — the month
  20. tube — in a tire
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. tube — the underground
  23. saw — past of 'see'
  24. fan — a supporter

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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