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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: march · fine · pound · board · mine · bowl · cue · field

  1. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  6. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  7. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  8. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  13. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  16. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  17. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  18. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  19. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  20. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  21. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  24. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — high quality
  2. march — the month
  3. bowl — a dish
  4. mine — for digging
  5. board — to get on
  6. fine — all right
  7. board — a committee
  8. march — music
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. field — for sport
  11. field — farmland
  12. bowl — a football final
  13. cue — a signal
  14. march — the month
  15. mine — an explosive
  16. cue — for pool
  17. board — a flat piece
  18. pound — a weight
  19. fine — a penalty
  20. pound — to hit hard
  21. cue — a hint
  22. field — a subject
  23. bowl — to roll
  24. pound — for dogs

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