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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 120 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: cabinet · band · land · wave · net · cap · field · nail

  1. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  5. What do you think of the new ________________?
  6. The ________________ went through the wall.
  7. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  8. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  9. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  13. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  14. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  17. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  18. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  19. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  20. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  21. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  22. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  23. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  24. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — of ice
  2. field — for sport
  3. band — a music group
  4. cabinet — a cupboard
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. nail — on a finger
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. net — for catching
  10. field — a subject
  11. land — to come down
  12. band — a ring
  13. wave — of the sea
  14. net — in sport
  15. field — farmland
  16. cap — a hat
  17. land — a country
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. net — after costs
  20. land — ground
  21. band — a rubber band
  22. wave — a sudden rise
  23. cap — a lid
  24. wave — with your hand

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