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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: field · cell · drill · sharp · key · ground · rush · saw

  1. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  2. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  3. There's no middle ________________.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  6. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  7. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  8. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  9. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  10. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  11. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. He works in a ________________ mill.
  14. That must've been a ________________.
  15. This piece is in a major ________________.
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  19. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  20. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  21. She's very handy with a ________________.
  22. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  23. It's one o'clock ________________.
  24. He's quite ________________, isn't he?

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

Answer key

  1. saw — past of 'see'
  2. rush — hurry
  3. ground — a position
  4. field — farmland
  5. key — the most important part
  6. key — for a lock
  7. rush — to hurry
  8. sharp — with an edge
  9. ground — the earth
  10. drill — army training
  11. drill — a practice
  12. field — a subject
  13. saw — the tool
  14. rush — a thrill
  15. key — in music
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. drill — the tool
  18. field — for sport
  19. cell — in biology
  20. cell — a phone
  21. saw — the tool
  22. ground — crushed
  23. sharp — exactly
  24. sharp — clever

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