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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. She's very handy with a ________________.
  2. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  3. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  6. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  7. He works in a ________________ mill.
  8. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  9. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  10. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  11. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  12. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  13. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  14. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  17. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  18. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  19. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  20. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  21. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  22. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  23. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. scale — size or range
  3. scale — in music
  4. field — farmland
  5. straw — dry grass
  6. pit — a hole
  7. saw — the tool
  8. wave — with your hand
  9. scale — for weighing
  10. ruler — for measuring
  11. pit — in a race
  12. straw — to clutch at straws
  13. pit — a fruit stone
  14. fall — the season
  15. field — for sport
  16. fall — to drop
  17. wave — of the sea
  18. saw — past of 'see'
  19. ruler — a monarch
  20. straw — a straw man
  21. wave — a sudden rise
  22. fall — to drop
  23. ruler — for measuring
  24. field — a subject

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