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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: fall · land · hide · scale · craft · mine · field · spell

  1. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  2. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. When are we going to ________________?
  9. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  10. How do you ________________ your surname?
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  13. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  14. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  15. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  16. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  17. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  18. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  19. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  20. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  23. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  24. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. field — a subject
  4. mine — an explosive
  5. mine — for digging
  6. scale — for weighing
  7. field — for sport
  8. land — to come down
  9. spell — magic
  10. spell — letters
  11. field — farmland
  12. fall — the season
  13. craft — a handicraft
  14. fall — to drop
  15. hide — animal skin
  16. land — a country
  17. spell — a short time
  18. craft — a skill
  19. mine — belonging to me
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. land — ground
  22. scale — in music
  23. scale — size or range
  24. craft — boats

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