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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. My father caught me by the ________________.
  2. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  3. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  4. This piece is in a major ________________.
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  7. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  8. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  9. There's no middle ________________.
  10. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  11. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  12. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  13. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  14. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  15. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  19. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  20. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  21. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  22. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  23. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. arm — a part of something
  3. patient — calm and waiting
  4. key — in music
  5. kid — child
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. fall — to drop
  8. kid — to tease
  9. ground — a position
  10. racket — a loud noise
  11. key — for a lock
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. ground — the earth
  14. key — the most important part
  15. ground — crushed
  16. file — a line of people
  17. file — a document
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. fall — to drop
  22. fall — the season
  23. file — a tool
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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