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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. That must've been a ________________.
  2. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  3. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  4. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  7. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  8. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  9. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  10. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  11. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  12. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  13. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  14. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  15. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  16. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  19. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  22. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  23. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  24. What do you think of the new ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. rush — a thrill
  2. mouse — the animal
  3. lean — to rest against
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. field — for sport
  6. mouse — the animal
  7. hide — animal skin
  8. lean — thin
  9. rush — hurry
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. rush — to hurry
  12. band — a ring
  13. file — a line of people
  14. band — a music group
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. cabinet — a cupboard
  17. field — a subject
  18. file — a tool
  19. lean — to bend
  20. file — a document
  21. field — farmland
  22. mouse — for a computer
  23. band — a rubber band
  24. cabinet — ministers

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