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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: cell · wind · season · foot · pass · wound · saw · mine

  1. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  2. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  6. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  7. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  10. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  11. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  12. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  13. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  14. She's very handy with a ________________.
  15. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  16. He works in a ________________ mill.
  17. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  18. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  19. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  20. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  21. Did you ________________ the meat?
  22. He was locked up in a ________________.
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  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. pass — to succeed
  2. pass — to spend time
  3. cell — a phone
  4. mine — for digging
  5. wound — an injury
  6. wind — to turn a key
  7. season — of the year
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. season — in sport
  10. wound — an injury
  11. foot — the bottom
  12. foot — part of the body
  13. wound — past of 'wind'
  14. saw — the tool
  15. wind — moving air
  16. saw — the tool
  17. foot — a measure
  18. saw — past of 'see'
  19. pass — a permit
  20. mine — belonging to me
  21. season — to add flavour
  22. cell — in a prison
  23. cell — in biology
  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