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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 116 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. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  2. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  3. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  4. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  5. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  6. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  7. The ________________ went through the wall.
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. I can't ________________ this cold.
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  14. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  15. She's very handy with a ________________.
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. He works in a ________________ mill.
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  21. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. stand — on your feet
  4. saw — past of 'see'
  5. pound — for dogs
  6. stand — for spectators
  7. nail — for a hammer
  8. field — farmland
  9. stand — to bear
  10. shower — to wash
  11. hide — animal skin
  12. field — for sport
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. pound — a weight
  15. saw — the tool
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. saw — the tool
  18. shower — rain
  19. cold — not warm
  20. pound — to hit hard
  21. nail — on a finger
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. hide — to keep secret
  24. cold — an illness

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