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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. What do you think of the new ________________?
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  4. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. The ________________ went through the wall.
  7. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  8. I can't ________________ this cold.
  9. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  10. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  11. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. How do you ________________ your surname?
  16. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  17. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  18. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  19. False peace will not ________________.
  20. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  21. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  22. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. field — for sport
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. deal — to handle
  5. hand — help
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. deal — a big deal
  8. stand — to bear
  9. nail — on a finger
  10. stand — for spectators
  11. spell — a short time
  12. field — a subject
  13. spell — magic
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. spell — letters
  16. last — final
  17. deal — an agreement
  18. stand — on your feet
  19. last — to go on
  20. cabinet — a cupboard
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. hand — in cards
  23. field — farmland
  24. last — finally

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