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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. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  2. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  3. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  4. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  5. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  6. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  9. What do you think of the new ________________?
  10. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  11. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  16. The ________________ took off on time.
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  19. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  20. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  21. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  22. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  23. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  24. He is as ________________ as a wolf.

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

Answer key

  1. net — for catching
  2. plane — in geometry
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. deal — an agreement
  5. deal — to handle
  6. kid — child
  7. field — a subject
  8. rock — music
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. lean — to bend
  11. kid — to tease
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. lean — to rest against
  14. field — for sport
  15. rock — a stone
  16. plane — an aircraft
  17. net — in sport
  18. plane — a tool
  19. net — after costs
  20. deal — a big deal
  21. field — farmland
  22. cabinet — a cupboard
  23. rock — to move gently
  24. lean — thin

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