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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. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  5. My father caught me by the ________________.
  6. He works in a ________________ mill.
  7. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  8. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. She's very handy with a ________________.
  11. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  12. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  13. David sat on the ________________.
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  17. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  18. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  19. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  20. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  21. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  22. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. object — to protest
  3. band — a music group
  4. object — an aim
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. saw — the tool
  7. swing — in golf
  8. chair — a professorship
  9. field — farmland
  10. saw — the tool
  11. band — a ring
  12. arm — a part of something
  13. swing — to play on
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. field — for sport
  16. object — a thing
  17. rock — a stone
  18. rock — to move gently
  19. swing — music
  20. band — a rubber band
  21. chair — a leader
  22. saw — past of 'see'
  23. field — a subject
  24. arm — part of the body

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