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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. My father caught me by the ________________.
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  4. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  5. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  8. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  14. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  15. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  16. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  17. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  18. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  22. David sat on the ________________.
  23. Did you ________________ the meat?
  24. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. season — of the year
  3. swing — music
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. cue — for pool
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. season — in sport
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. capital — a city
  11. swing — in golf
  12. field — a subject
  13. cue — a signal
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. stick — to attach or keep to
  16. field — farmland
  17. band — a music group
  18. arm — a part of something
  19. field — for sport
  20. capital — money
  21. cue — a hint
  22. swing — to play on
  23. season — to add flavour
  24. band — a ring

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