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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 120 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: mug · straw · nail · cabinet · field · wound · key · cell

  1. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. The ________________ went through the wall.
  5. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  8. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  9. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  10. What do you think of the new ________________?
  11. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  12. Where did you ________________ them?
  13. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  14. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  17. This piece is in a major ________________.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  21. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  22. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  23. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  24. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in biology
  2. field — a subject
  3. wound — an injury
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. field — farmland
  7. key — the most important part
  8. wound — past of 'wind'
  9. wound — an injury
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. mug — a face
  12. mug — to rob
  13. cabinet — a cupboard
  14. key — for a lock
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. nail — on a finger
  17. key — in music
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. field — for sport
  20. nail — for a hammer
  21. mug — a cup
  22. straw — to clutch at straws
  23. straw — a straw man
  24. cell — a phone

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