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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: field · hand · can · mine · fine · lean · last · arm

  1. False peace will not ________________.
  2. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. My father caught me by the ________________.
  14. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  17. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  18. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  19. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  20. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  21. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  22. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  23. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  24. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.

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

Answer key

  1. last — to go on
  2. last — final
  3. field — for sport
  4. mine — an explosive
  5. hand — in cards
  6. field — farmland
  7. last — finally
  8. fine — all right
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. hand — help
  11. can — a tin
  12. field — a subject
  13. arm — part of the body
  14. fine — high quality
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. lean — to bend
  17. can — a tin
  18. fine — a penalty
  19. lean — thin
  20. can — to be able to
  21. lean — to rest against
  22. arm — part of the body
  23. mine — for digging
  24. arm — a part of something

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