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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: bulb · field · pitcher · deal · file · hide · drill · degree

  1. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  3. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  4. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  5. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  9. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  10. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  11. I've got to change the light ________________.
  12. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  13. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  14. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  17. The light ________________ burned out.
  18. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  19. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  20. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  21. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  22. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  23. He is an ace ________________.
  24. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. bulb — of a plant
  3. deal — an agreement
  4. drill — the tool
  5. file — a line of people
  6. field — for sport
  7. field — a subject
  8. file — a document
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. drill — a practice
  11. bulb — for light
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. file — a tool
  14. drill — army training
  15. field — farmland
  16. hide — animal skin
  17. bulb — for light
  18. degree — temperature
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. degree — an amount
  21. deal — a big deal
  22. deal — to handle
  23. pitcher — in baseball
  24. pitcher — a jug

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