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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 116 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. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  3. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  4. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  5. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  6. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  7. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  8. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  9. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. Where did you ________________ them?
  14. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  15. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  16. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  20. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  21. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  22. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  23. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  24. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. object — an aim
  3. file — a line of people
  4. object — a thing
  5. object — to protest
  6. chair — to sit on
  7. wax — for sculpting
  8. bat — in an idiom
  9. wax — to grow
  10. field — for sport
  11. chair — a professorship
  12. field — a subject
  13. mug — to rob
  14. file — a tool
  15. chair — a leader
  16. chip — for betting
  17. bat — the animal
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. file — a document
  20. chip — in a computer
  21. mug — a face
  22. wax — in the ear
  23. mug — a cup
  24. chip — to eat

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