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

Word bank: kid · mouse · snap · fork · field · jam · charge · wound

  1. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  2. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  3. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  4. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  5. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  6. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. The tickets are free of ________________.
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  11. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  12. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  15. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  16. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  17. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  18. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  19. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  20. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  21. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  22. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  23. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. wound — an injury
  3. kid — child
  4. jam — in traffic
  5. wound — past of 'wind'
  6. jam — a tight spot
  7. wound — an injury
  8. charge — a price
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. snap — to speak sharply
  11. charge — electricity
  12. mouse — for a computer
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. mouse — the animal
  15. fork — a garden tool
  16. snap — to click
  17. mouse — the animal
  18. charge — in control
  19. fork — to eat with
  20. jam — to spread on bread
  21. kid — to tease
  22. field — for sport
  23. fork — in a road
  24. field — farmland

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