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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.

Make a worksheet

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
468
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: hand · wind · nail · field · content · drill · stand · wax

  1. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  2. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  7. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  10. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  11. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  14. The ________________ went through the wall.
  15. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. I can't ________________ this cold.
  18. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  21. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  22. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  23. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  24. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — for a hammer
  2. stand — on your feet
  3. field — a subject
  4. hand — in cards
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. hand — help
  7. content — the amount
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. wax — to grow
  10. nail — on a finger
  11. drill — army training
  12. field — farmland
  13. stand — for spectators
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. content — happy
  16. wind — moving air
  17. stand — to bear
  18. wax — in the ear
  19. field — for sport
  20. wax — for sculpting
  21. drill — a practice
  22. drill — the tool
  23. content — videos and posts
  24. wind — moving air

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