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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 120 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. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  2. Don't do anything ________________.
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  6. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  7. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  8. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  9. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  10. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  14. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  15. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  16. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  17. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  18. That must've been a ________________.
  19. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. The ________________ went through the wall.
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  24. Spring is a pleasant ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — to hurry
  2. rash — hasty
  3. hand — help
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. rash — a series
  6. rash — on the skin
  7. season — in sport
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. snap — to snap out of it
  10. snap — to click
  11. field — a subject
  12. field — for sport
  13. snap — to speak sharply
  14. board — to get on
  15. hand — in cards
  16. rush — hurry
  17. board — a flat piece
  18. rush — a thrill
  19. board — a committee
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. field — farmland
  23. nail — on a finger
  24. season — of the year

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