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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's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  2. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. Where did you ________________ them?
  6. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  7. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  8. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  9. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  10. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  11. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  12. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  13. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  14. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  15. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  16. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  19. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  20. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  21. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  22. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. I'll take my ________________ from you.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. field — farmland
  4. capital — a city
  5. mug — to rob
  6. stick — to attach or keep to
  7. chair — to sit on
  8. chest — a box
  9. chair — a leader
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. cue — a signal
  12. mug — a face
  13. fan — to cool the air
  14. cue — for pool
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. chest — of your body
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. field — for sport
  19. mug — a cup
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. chest — of your body
  22. chair — a professorship
  23. capital — money
  24. cue — a hint

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