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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.

Words on the sheet
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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 · kick · saw · straw · fall · fan · object · rock

  1. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  2. She's very handy with a ________________.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  5. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  6. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  7. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  8. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. He works in a ________________ mill.
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  13. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  14. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  17. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  18. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  19. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  20. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  21. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  22. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  24. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — a thrill
  2. saw — the tool
  3. field — a subject
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. object — a thing
  6. kick — with a leg
  7. fall — the season
  8. rock — music
  9. field — farmland
  10. saw — the tool
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. fall — to drop
  13. object — an aim
  14. fall — to drop
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. saw — past of 'see'
  17. rock — a stone
  18. kick — in football
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. fan — to cool the air
  21. rock — to move gently
  22. object — to protest
  23. straw — dry grass
  24. field — for sport

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