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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. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. When are we going to ________________?
  4. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  5. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  9. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  10. Don't do anything ________________.
  11. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  12. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  13. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  14. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  17. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  18. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  19. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  20. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  21. My father caught me by the ________________.
  22. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  23. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  24. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.

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

Answer key

  1. foot — a measure
  2. field — farmland
  3. land — to come down
  4. foot — part of the body
  5. craft — a handicraft
  6. land — a country
  7. field — a subject
  8. land — ground
  9. rash — on the skin
  10. rash — hasty
  11. net — for catching
  12. net — in sport
  13. rock — to move gently
  14. rock — a stone
  15. field — for sport
  16. arm — a part of something
  17. arm — part of the body
  18. craft — boats
  19. net — after costs
  20. craft — a skill
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. rash — a series
  23. rock — music
  24. foot — the bottom

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