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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. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  4. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  5. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  12. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  13. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  16. It's one o'clock ________________.
  17. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  18. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  19. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  20. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  21. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  22. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  23. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  24. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — animal skin
  2. field — a subject
  3. deal — a big deal
  4. club — a group
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. club — for golf
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. foot — part of the body
  10. hand — help
  11. club — for dancing
  12. foot — the bottom
  13. deal — an agreement
  14. field — farmland
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. sharp — exactly
  17. sharp — with an edge
  18. hand — in cards
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. foot — a measure
  21. sharp — clever
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. field — for sport
  24. deal — to handle

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