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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: rest · hide · mouse · field · bulb · snap · fan · kick

  1. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  3. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  4. The light ________________ burned out.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  7. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  8. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  9. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  12. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  13. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  14. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  15. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  16. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  17. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  18. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  19. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  20. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  21. I've got to change the light ________________.
  22. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  23. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  24. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. kick — in football
  3. mouse — the animal
  4. bulb — for light
  5. field — a subject
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. snap — to click
  8. kick — a thrill
  9. mouse — the animal
  10. field — for sport
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. rest — a break
  13. hide — animal skin
  14. rest — what's left
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. snap — to snap out of it
  17. snap — to speak sharply
  18. rest — what's left
  19. kick — with a leg
  20. fan — to cool the air
  21. bulb — for light
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. mouse — for a computer
  24. bulb — of a plant

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