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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. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  5. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  6. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  7. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  8. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  9. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  10. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  11. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  12. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  13. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  16. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  17. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  18. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  19. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  20. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  21. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  22. Have you found your soul ________________?
  23. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  24. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — belonging to me
  2. field — farmland
  3. wound — an injury
  4. leaves — lets stay
  5. wax — in the ear
  6. chip — to eat
  7. wound — past of 'wind'
  8. wax — to grow
  9. mate — to breed
  10. leaves — of a tree
  11. wound — an injury
  12. chip — for betting
  13. field — for sport
  14. mine — for digging
  15. field — a subject
  16. mine — an explosive
  17. fall — to drop
  18. wax — for sculpting
  19. mate — a friend
  20. leaves — to go away
  21. fall — to drop
  22. mate — a partner
  23. chip — in a computer
  24. fall — the season

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