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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. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  2. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  3. When was this ________________ built?
  4. We're almost out of ________________.
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. I can't ________________ this cold.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. You don't need to ________________ round.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  15. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  16. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  17. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  18. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  19. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  20. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  21. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  22. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  23. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  24. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a professorship
  2. bat — in an idiom
  3. temple — a place of worship
  4. pop — soda
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. stand — to bear
  7. hand — help
  8. pitch — a sales talk
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. hand — in cards
  11. bat — the animal
  12. pop — to visit
  13. field — a subject
  14. stand — for spectators
  15. stand — on your feet
  16. pop — music
  17. field — farmland
  18. temple — side of the head
  19. chair — a leader
  20. pitch — a sports field
  21. field — for sport
  22. pitch — completely
  23. chair — to sit on
  24. temple — a place of worship

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