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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. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  2. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  3. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  4. When are we going to ________________?
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. Have you found your soul ________________?
  7. What do you think of the new ________________?
  8. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  9. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  10. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. She's very handy with a ________________.
  16. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  17. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  18. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  19. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  20. He works in a ________________ mill.
  21. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  22. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  23. David sat on the ________________.
  24. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. cabinet — a cupboard
  3. mate — to breed
  4. land — to come down
  5. field — for sport
  6. mate — a partner
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. land — ground
  9. swing — music
  10. wound — an injury
  11. field — a subject
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. swing — in golf
  14. field — farmland
  15. saw — the tool
  16. safe — out of danger
  17. safe — out of danger
  18. mate — a friend
  19. land — a country
  20. saw — the tool
  21. wound — an injury
  22. safe — a strongbox
  23. swing — to play on
  24. saw — past of 'see'

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