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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. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  3. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  4. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  5. I can't ________________ this cold.
  6. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  11. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  12. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  13. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  14. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  15. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  18. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  19. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  20. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  21. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  24. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. chair — a leader
  3. stand — on your feet
  4. foot — the bottom
  5. stand — to bear
  6. wound — an injury
  7. game — a match
  8. wound — an injury
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. foot — part of the body
  11. field — for sport
  12. can — a tin
  13. game — a kind of play
  14. foot — a measure
  15. root — the cause
  16. game — wild animals
  17. root — of a word
  18. can — to be able to
  19. chair — a professorship
  20. stand — for spectators
  21. can — a tin
  22. field — a subject
  23. chair — to sit on
  24. root — of a plant

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