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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 120 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'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  2. My father caught me by the ________________.
  3. I can't ________________ this cold.
  4. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  5. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  6. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  7. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  8. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  9. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  10. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  15. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  18. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  19. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  23. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. arm — part of the body
  3. stand — to bear
  4. stand — for spectators
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. wake — to stop sleeping
  7. lie — to recline
  8. drill — army training
  9. stand — on your feet
  10. arm — a part of something
  11. field — a subject
  12. drill — the tool
  13. land — a country
  14. wake — a trail
  15. drill — a practice
  16. race — a contest
  17. lie — an untruth
  18. race — humankind
  19. wake — before a funeral
  20. land — to come down
  21. land — ground
  22. race — the arms race
  23. field — for sport
  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