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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: cabinet · field · rest · game · fine · drill · saw · prune

  1. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  2. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  4. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  5. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  8. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  9. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  10. What do you think of the new ________________?
  11. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  12. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  13. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  14. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  15. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  16. He works in a ________________ mill.
  17. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  18. She's very handy with a ________________.
  19. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  20. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  21. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  22. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  24. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. game — wild animals
  3. cabinet — a cupboard
  4. rest — a break
  5. rest — what's left
  6. field — farmland
  7. fine — all right
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. fine — high quality
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. fine — a penalty
  12. game — a kind of play
  13. drill — a practice
  14. prune — to trim
  15. drill — army training
  16. saw — the tool
  17. rest — what's left
  18. saw — the tool
  19. saw — past of 'see'
  20. prune — the fruit
  21. field — for sport
  22. drill — the tool
  23. game — a match
  24. prune — to trim

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