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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. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  6. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  7. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  8. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  11. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  12. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  13. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  14. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  15. False peace will not ________________.
  16. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  21. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. What do you think of the new ________________?
  24. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. field — a subject
  3. last — final
  4. kid — to tease
  5. board — to get on
  6. cabinet — a cupboard
  7. board — a flat piece
  8. wax — for sculpting
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. board — a committee
  11. staff — a stick
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. last — to go on
  16. fan — to cool the air
  17. field — for sport
  18. field — farmland
  19. kid — child
  20. wax — in the ear
  21. wax — to grow
  22. last — finally
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. staff — employees

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