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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 116 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.

Words on the sheet
468
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 · game · chair · cap · ruler · wax · cabinet · staff

  1. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  2. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  3. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  4. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  7. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  12. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  13. What do you think of the new ________________?
  14. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  15. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  18. That was a fun ________________.
  19. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  20. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  21. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  22. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a lid
  2. staff — employees
  3. ruler — for measuring
  4. cap — a hat
  5. field — farmland
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. cap — of ice
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. staff — a stick
  10. field — for sport
  11. chair — a professorship
  12. game — wild animals
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. chair — a leader
  15. wax — in the ear
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. ruler — for measuring
  18. game — a match
  19. wax — for sculpting
  20. ruler — a monarch
  21. wax — to grow
  22. cabinet — a cupboard
  23. field — a subject
  24. staff — employees

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