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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. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  2. What do you think of the new ________________?
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  7. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  8. When will it ________________ you to start?
  9. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  10. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  11. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  12. Have you settled on a ________________?
  13. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  14. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  17. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  18. The ________________ took off on time.
  19. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  20. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  21. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  22. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  23. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  24. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — the season
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. field — a subject
  4. field — for sport
  5. field — farmland
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. fall — to drop
  8. suit — to fit
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. snap — to speak sharply
  11. wax — in the ear
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. suit — clothes
  14. wax — for sculpting
  15. wax — to grow
  16. fall — to drop
  17. cabinet — a cupboard
  18. plane — an aircraft
  19. date — the fruit
  20. snap — to snap out of it
  21. snap — to click
  22. suit — in cards
  23. plane — a tool
  24. plane — in geometry

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