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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. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  2. This piece is in a major ________________.
  3. My father caught me by the ________________.
  4. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  5. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  6. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  7. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  8. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  12. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  13. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  14. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  17. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  18. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  19. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  22. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  23. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  24. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. present — the time now
  2. key — in music
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. board — a flat piece
  5. key — the most important part
  6. board — to get on
  7. mine — for digging
  8. board — a committee
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. field — a subject
  11. file — a document
  12. mine — belonging to me
  13. arm — part of the body
  14. file — a line of people
  15. field — farmland
  16. hand — in cards
  17. key — for a lock
  18. present — there
  19. hand — part of the body
  20. field — for sport
  21. present — a gift
  22. arm — a part of something
  23. hand — help
  24. file — a tool

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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