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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. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  4. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  5. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  6. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  7. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  8. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  13. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  14. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. What do you think of the new ________________?
  17. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  19. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  20. Have you found your soul ________________?
  21. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  22. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — a cupboard
  2. kid — to tease
  3. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  4. fork — a garden tool
  5. mate — a friend
  6. fork — in a road
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. field — a subject
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. band — a ring
  11. field — farmland
  12. fork — to eat with
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. mate — to breed
  15. wax — to grow
  16. cabinet — ministers
  17. patient — calm and waiting
  18. field — for sport
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. mate — a partner
  21. band — a music group
  22. wax — for sculpting
  23. kid — child
  24. wax — in the ear

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