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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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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: drill · plane · wound · mouse · stand · face · saw · season

  1. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. The ________________ took off on time.
  4. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  5. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  6. She's very handy with a ________________.
  7. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  8. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  9. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  10. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  11. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  12. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  13. Did you ________________ the meat?
  14. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  15. I can't ________________ this cold.
  16. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  17. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  18. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  19. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  20. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  21. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  22. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  23. He works in a ________________ mill.
  24. We had a fire ________________ at school today.

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

Answer key

  1. season — in sport
  2. season — of the year
  3. plane — an aircraft
  4. mouse — for a computer
  5. face — part of the head
  6. saw — the tool
  7. mouse — the animal
  8. face — to confront
  9. drill — army training
  10. wound — an injury
  11. wound — past of 'wind'
  12. wound — an injury
  13. season — to add flavour
  14. stand — for spectators
  15. stand — to bear
  16. face — to point toward
  17. mouse — the animal
  18. plane — a tool
  19. saw — past of 'see'
  20. stand — on your feet
  21. drill — the tool
  22. plane — in geometry
  23. saw — the tool
  24. drill — a practice

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