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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 116 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.

Words on the sheet
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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: field · mine · face · staff · hand · saw · charge · spring

  1. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  2. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  3. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  4. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. The tickets are free of ________________.
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  12. He works in a ________________ mill.
  13. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  14. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  15. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  16. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  17. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  18. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  21. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  22. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  23. She's very handy with a ________________.
  24. She had a strange look on her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — the season
  2. staff — employees
  3. saw — past of 'see'
  4. hand — help
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. charge — a price
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. face — to point toward
  9. field — a subject
  10. field — farmland
  11. face — to confront
  12. saw — the tool
  13. charge — in control
  14. charge — electricity
  15. hand — in cards
  16. spring — a coil
  17. mine — an explosive
  18. staff — a stick
  19. field — for sport
  20. spring — of water
  21. staff — employees
  22. mine — for digging
  23. saw — the tool
  24. face — part of the head

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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