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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 sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  4. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  7. My father caught me by the ________________.
  8. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  11. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  12. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  13. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  14. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  15. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  16. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  17. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  19. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  20. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  21. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  22. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  23. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  24. What do you think of the new ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. field — farmland
  3. drill — a practice
  4. wound — past of 'wind'
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. drill — army training
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. field — a subject
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. wound — an injury
  12. arm — a part of something
  13. arm — part of the body
  14. cabinet — a cupboard
  15. mouse — for a computer
  16. cabinet — ministers
  17. fan — to cool the air
  18. field — for sport
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. wound — an injury
  21. mouse — the animal
  22. drill — the tool
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. cabinet — ministers

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