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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. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  2. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  3. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  4. Have you found your soul ________________?
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  7. There's no middle ________________.
  8. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  9. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  12. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  13. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  14. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  17. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  18. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  19. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  20. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  21. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  22. My father caught me by the ________________.
  23. He is an ace ________________.
  24. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. arm — part of the body
  3. shower — rain
  4. mate — a partner
  5. field — a subject
  6. shower — a meteor shower
  7. ground — a position
  8. mate — a friend
  9. shower — to wash
  10. march — the month
  11. ground — the earth
  12. march — music
  13. march — the month
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. field — for sport
  16. ground — crushed
  17. bowl — a football final
  18. field — farmland
  19. arm — a part of something
  20. mate — to breed
  21. bowl — to roll
  22. arm — part of the body
  23. pitcher — in baseball
  24. bowl — a dish

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