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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
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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: cap · chip · prune · field · can · land · saw · wind

  1. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  3. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  4. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  7. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  8. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  9. She's very handy with a ________________.
  10. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  16. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  17. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  18. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  21. He works in a ________________ mill.
  22. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. Recycle the empty soda ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. cap — a hat
  3. can — a tin
  4. prune — to trim
  5. field — farmland
  6. chip — in a computer
  7. chip — for betting
  8. field — a subject
  9. saw — the tool
  10. prune — to trim
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. cap — a lid
  13. land — a country
  14. field — for sport
  15. land — ground
  16. chip — to eat
  17. saw — past of 'see'
  18. can — to be able to
  19. wind — moving air
  20. cap — of ice
  21. saw — the tool
  22. prune — the fruit
  23. land — to come down
  24. can — a tin

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