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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 116 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: drill · track · spell · rock · net · field · pop · tube

  1. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  2. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  3. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  4. You don't need to ________________ round.
  5. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  6. I'll be taking the ________________.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  12. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  13. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  14. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  15. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  16. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  17. How do you ________________ your surname?
  18. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  19. We're almost out of ________________.
  20. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  21. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  22. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  23. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  24. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — a container
  2. tube — in a tire
  3. spell — a short time
  4. pop — to visit
  5. rock — to move gently
  6. tube — the underground
  7. field — farmland
  8. pop — music
  9. net — after costs
  10. field — a subject
  11. drill — a practice
  12. drill — army training
  13. spell — magic
  14. drill — the tool
  15. net — in sport
  16. rock — music
  17. spell — letters
  18. track — to keep track
  19. pop — soda
  20. track — a path
  21. track — a song
  22. rock — a stone
  23. net — for catching
  24. field — for sport

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