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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. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  5. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  6. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  9. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  10. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  11. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  16. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  17. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  18. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  19. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  20. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  21. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  22. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  23. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  24. Can you turn the ________________ on?

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

Answer key

  1. hand — part of the body
  2. field — a subject
  3. field — for sport
  4. squash — the sport
  5. chest — a box
  6. mouse — the animal
  7. march — the month
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. hand — help
  10. board — a committee
  11. march — the month
  12. field — farmland
  13. squash — to crush
  14. hand — in cards
  15. board — a flat piece
  16. chest — of your body
  17. march — music
  18. chest — of your body
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. mouse — for a computer
  21. board — to get on
  22. squash — the vegetable
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. fan — to cool the air

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