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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 ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  10. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  11. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  12. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  13. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  14. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  15. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  19. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  22. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  23. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  24. Don't do anything ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. fall — to drop
  3. game — a match
  4. game — wild animals
  5. board — to get on
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. calf — a young animal
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. board — a committee
  10. rash — a series
  11. fall — the season
  12. club — for dancing
  13. board — a flat piece
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. club — a group
  16. field — a subject
  17. fall — to drop
  18. bat — in an idiom
  19. club — for golf
  20. field — farmland
  21. field — for sport
  22. calf — of the leg
  23. rash — on the skin
  24. rash — hasty

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