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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. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  2. My father caught me by the ________________.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  5. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  6. Have you met the new head ________________?
  7. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  10. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  11. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  12. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  13. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  14. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  15. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  16. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  17. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  18. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  19. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  22. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — to pay attention
  2. arm — part of the body
  3. field — farmland
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. chest — a box
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. dip — to sink
  8. chest — of your body
  9. lean — to bend
  10. arm — a part of something
  11. lean — to rest against
  12. hide — animal skin
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. coach — pulled by horses
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. mark — a grade
  17. lean — thin
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. dip — a sauce
  20. field — for sport
  21. dip — to dunk
  22. chest — of your body
  23. field — a subject
  24. mark — a trace

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