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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: row · drill · wave · pop · cap · field · pit · snap

  1. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  2. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  3. You don't need to ________________ round.
  4. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  5. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  6. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  7. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  8. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  9. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  10. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  11. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  12. We're almost out of ________________.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  15. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  16. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  17. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  18. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  19. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  20. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  21. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  22. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  23. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wave — with your hand
  2. pit — a hole
  3. pop — to visit
  4. field — for sport
  5. snap — to click
  6. cap — of ice
  7. snap — to snap out of it
  8. drill — army training
  9. row — a line
  10. snap — to speak sharply
  11. row — to paddle
  12. pop — soda
  13. field — a subject
  14. wave — of the sea
  15. cap — a hat
  16. cap — a lid
  17. wave — a sudden rise
  18. drill — the tool
  19. pit — a fruit stone
  20. pit — in a race
  21. row — a quarrel
  22. drill — a practice
  23. pop — music
  24. field — farmland

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