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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
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: leaves · can · clip · pound · mine · present · field · stand

  1. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  2. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  3. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  6. I can't ________________ this cold.
  7. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  8. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  9. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  15. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  18. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  19. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  20. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  21. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  24. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.

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

Answer key

  1. can — to be able to
  2. present — the time now
  3. stand — for spectators
  4. field — farmland
  5. leaves — lets stay
  6. stand — to bear
  7. present — a gift
  8. can — a tin
  9. present — there
  10. field — a subject
  11. pound — to hit hard
  12. clip — for paper
  13. clip — a video
  14. pound — for dogs
  15. mine — an explosive
  16. field — for sport
  17. can — a tin
  18. leaves — to go away
  19. mine — belonging to me
  20. leaves — of a tree
  21. mine — for digging
  22. clip — to cut
  23. pound — a weight
  24. stand — on your feet

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