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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. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  2. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  3. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  4. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  5. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  6. Have you met the new head ________________?
  7. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  8. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  9. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. The ________________ went through the wall.
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  16. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  19. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  20. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  21. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  22. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  23. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  24. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — size or range
  2. fork — a garden tool
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. rest — a break
  5. rest — what's left
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. fall — the season
  8. fork — in a road
  9. fall — to drop
  10. field — a subject
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. wound — an injury
  13. fork — to eat with
  14. wound — an injury
  15. fall — to drop
  16. field — farmland
  17. field — for sport
  18. nail — on a finger
  19. wound — past of 'wind'
  20. coach — pulled by horses
  21. scale — in music
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. rest — what's left
  24. scale — for weighing

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