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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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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. He works in a ________________ mill.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  4. What do you think of the new ________________?
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  7. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  12. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  16. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  17. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  18. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  19. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  20. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  21. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  22. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  23. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  24. She's very handy with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. field — farmland
  3. leaves — of a tree
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. mine — for digging
  6. race — the arms race
  7. present — a gift
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. shower — rain
  10. field — for sport
  11. race — a contest
  12. leaves — to go away
  13. field — a subject
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. present — there
  16. shower — to wash
  17. saw — past of 'see'
  18. race — humankind
  19. present — the time now
  20. shower — a meteor shower
  21. cabinet — a cupboard
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. leaves — lets stay
  24. saw — the tool

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