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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 120 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: field · swing · drill · last · fork · degree · safe · bowl

  1. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  2. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  5. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  6. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  9. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  10. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  11. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  12. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  13. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  14. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. David sat on the ________________.
  19. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  24. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — a practice
  2. fork — in a road
  3. field — a subject
  4. bowl — to roll
  5. safe — out of danger
  6. bowl — a football final
  7. last — final
  8. fork — to eat with
  9. drill — army training
  10. safe — out of danger
  11. drill — the tool
  12. safe — a strongbox
  13. bowl — a dish
  14. fork — a garden tool
  15. field — for sport
  16. swing — music
  17. degree — temperature
  18. swing — to play on
  19. degree — an amount
  20. field — farmland
  21. last — to go on
  22. last — finally
  23. degree — from a university
  24. swing — in golf

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