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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 can't ________________ this cold.
  2. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  3. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. Where did you ________________ them?
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  9. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  10. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  13. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  14. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  15. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  16. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  17. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  18. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  19. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  20. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  21. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. What do you think of the new ________________?
  24. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — to bear
  2. stand — for spectators
  3. club — for dancing
  4. march — the month
  5. field — farmland
  6. mug — to rob
  7. field — for sport
  8. mug — a cup
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. cabinet — a cupboard
  11. march — the month
  12. snap — to snap out of it
  13. snap — to click
  14. stand — on your feet
  15. trunk — of an elephant
  16. club — a group
  17. trunk — of a car
  18. club — for golf
  19. mug — a face
  20. snap — to speak sharply
  21. trunk — of a tree
  22. field — a subject
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. march — music

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