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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: mine · field · saw · clip · bore · firm · rush · rash

  1. He works in a ________________ mill.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  6. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  11. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. That must've been a ________________.
  17. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  18. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. Don't do anything ________________.
  22. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  23. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  24. She's very handy with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. field — farmland
  3. rash — a series
  4. clip — for paper
  5. rush — to hurry
  6. firm — a company
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. firm — decided
  9. clip — to cut
  10. bore — to drill
  11. saw — past of 'see'
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. rush — hurry
  14. mine — for digging
  15. clip — a video
  16. rush — a thrill
  17. rash — on the skin
  18. firm — steady
  19. field — for sport
  20. field — a subject
  21. rash — hasty
  22. bore — gave birth
  23. bore — to tire
  24. saw — 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