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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. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  7. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  8. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  11. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  12. That was a fun ________________.
  13. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  14. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  15. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  16. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  21. When will it ________________ you to start?
  22. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  23. What do you think of the new ________________?
  24. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — for baseball
  2. bat — the animal
  3. cabinet — a cupboard
  4. field — farmland
  5. game — wild animals
  6. row — a line
  7. row — a quarrel
  8. toast — a drink to someone
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. game — a kind of play
  11. patient — calm and waiting
  12. game — a match
  13. row — to paddle
  14. suit — clothes
  15. toast — the most admired
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. field — for sport
  18. toast — bread
  19. field — a subject
  20. suit — in cards
  21. suit — to fit
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. cabinet — ministers

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