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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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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. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  5. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  8. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  9. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  10. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  11. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  15. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  16. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  17. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  18. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  19. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. What do you think of the new ________________?
  22. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  23. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  24. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — to sit on
  2. field — for sport
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. pit — in a race
  5. straw — dry grass
  6. field — a subject
  7. object — to protest
  8. fall — to drop
  9. cabinet — a cupboard
  10. trunk — of a tree
  11. object — a thing
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. field — farmland
  14. chair — a leader
  15. trunk — of a car
  16. cabinet — ministers
  17. object — an aim
  18. fall — to drop
  19. pit — a fruit stone
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. trunk — of an elephant
  23. pit — a hole
  24. fall — the season

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