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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  4. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. Did you ________________ the meat?
  7. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  8. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  11. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  14. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  15. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  18. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  19. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  20. The ________________ went through the wall.
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  23. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  24. The ball hit the back of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — for a hammer
  2. season — of the year
  3. hand — in cards
  4. chest — of your body
  5. hand — help
  6. season — to add flavour
  7. chest — a box
  8. season — in sport
  9. field — a subject
  10. chest — of your body
  11. mouse — for a computer
  12. field — farmland
  13. nail — on a finger
  14. net — after costs
  15. can — a tin
  16. field — for sport
  17. hand — part of the body
  18. mouse — the animal
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. nail — for a hammer
  21. net — for catching
  22. can — a tin
  23. can — to be able to
  24. net — in sport

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