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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.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
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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: march · fan · staff · roll · field · wake · current · shower

  1. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  5. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  6. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  11. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  12. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  13. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  14. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  15. We're on a ________________ here.
  16. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  17. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  18. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  19. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  20. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  21. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  22. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  23. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  24. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. march — music
  3. field — a subject
  4. staff — employees
  5. wake — to stop sleeping
  6. current — electric
  7. shower — rain
  8. field — for sport
  9. march — the month
  10. staff — a stick
  11. roll — a list
  12. current — happening now
  13. roll — a cake
  14. shower — a meteor shower
  15. roll — on a roll
  16. fan — to cool the air
  17. staff — employees
  18. wake — before a funeral
  19. shower — to wash
  20. wake — a trail
  21. march — the month
  22. current — of water
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. fan — a supporter

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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