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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: snap · drill · last · rest · field · fine · staff · race

  1. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  3. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  4. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  5. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  6. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  11. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  12. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  13. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  14. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  15. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  18. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  19. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  20. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  21. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  22. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. staff — employees
  3. staff — employees
  4. fine — all right
  5. snap — to speak sharply
  6. staff — a stick
  7. last — finally
  8. snap — to snap out of it
  9. last — to go on
  10. fine — high quality
  11. rest — a break
  12. drill — army training
  13. drill — a practice
  14. race — a contest
  15. snap — to click
  16. field — for sport
  17. race — humankind
  18. rest — what's left
  19. rest — what's left
  20. drill — the tool
  21. fine — a penalty
  22. race — the arms race
  23. field — a subject
  24. last — final

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