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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. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  4. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  5. It's one o'clock ________________.
  6. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  7. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  8. I can't ________________ this cold.
  9. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  10. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  11. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  12. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  13. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  14. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  15. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  16. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  17. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  18. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  19. The ________________ took off on time.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  22. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  23. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — the animal
  2. field — for sport
  3. mouse — the animal
  4. sharp — with an edge
  5. sharp — exactly
  6. chair — a professorship
  7. sharp — clever
  8. stand — to bear
  9. foot — part of the body
  10. chair — to sit on
  11. stand — on your feet
  12. stand — for spectators
  13. chair — a leader
  14. foot — a measure
  15. plane — in geometry
  16. file — a tool
  17. foot — the bottom
  18. mouse — for a computer
  19. plane — an aircraft
  20. field — a subject
  21. file — a line of people
  22. file — a document
  23. plane — a tool
  24. field — farmland

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