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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: field · pit · wind · chest · saw · hide · spell · cap

  1. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  2. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  3. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  4. He works in a ________________ mill.
  5. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  6. How do you ________________ your surname?
  7. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  13. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  14. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  15. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  16. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  17. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  18. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  21. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  22. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  23. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  24. She's very handy with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — in a race
  2. cap — a hat
  3. spell — a short time
  4. saw — the tool
  5. pit — a hole
  6. spell — letters
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. field — for sport
  9. field — a subject
  10. wind — moving air
  11. field — farmland
  12. hide — animal skin
  13. cap — of ice
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. chest — a box
  16. chest — of your body
  17. chest — of your body
  18. spell — magic
  19. wind — moving air
  20. saw — past of 'see'
  21. cap — a lid
  22. wind — to turn a key
  23. pit — a fruit stone
  24. saw — the tool

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