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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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Word bank
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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. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  2. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  3. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  4. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  5. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  6. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  7. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  8. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  18. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  19. Did you ________________ the meat?
  20. The ________________ went through the wall.
  21. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  22. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  23. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — for a computer
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. staff — employees
  4. lean — to rest against
  5. season — in sport
  6. staff — employees
  7. mouse — the animal
  8. lean — thin
  9. field — farmland
  10. cold — an illness
  11. nail — on a finger
  12. field — a subject
  13. scale — size or range
  14. cold — not warm
  15. season — of the year
  16. field — for sport
  17. lean — to bend
  18. scale — for weighing
  19. season — to add flavour
  20. nail — for a hammer
  21. scale — in music
  22. staff — a stick
  23. mouse — the animal
  24. cold — the Cold War

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