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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: shower · lean · field · bulb · straw · cap · game · deal

  1. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  2. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  5. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  6. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  7. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  8. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  9. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  10. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  13. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  14. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  15. I've got to change the light ________________.
  16. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  17. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. The light ________________ burned out.
  20. That was a fun ________________.
  21. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  24. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. field — for sport
  4. deal — an agreement
  5. shower — to wash
  6. cap — a hat
  7. shower — a meteor shower
  8. game — wild animals
  9. shower — rain
  10. deal — to handle
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. lean — thin
  13. bulb — of a plant
  14. deal — a big deal
  15. bulb — for light
  16. straw — to clutch at straws
  17. cap — of ice
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. bulb — for light
  20. game — a match
  21. cap — a lid
  22. field — farmland
  23. lean — to rest against
  24. lean — to bend

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