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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 120 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 was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  2. My father caught me by the ________________.
  3. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  4. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  5. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  6. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  7. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  8. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  9. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  10. The light ________________ burned out.
  11. This piece is in a major ________________.
  12. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  13. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  14. I've got to change the light ________________.
  15. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  16. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  17. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  18. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  21. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  22. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. He hit the ball with his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — animal skin
  2. arm — part of the body
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. key — the most important part
  5. arm — a part of something
  6. wound — an injury
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. wound — an injury
  9. scale — size or range
  10. bulb — for light
  11. key — in music
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. scale — for weighing
  14. bulb — for light
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. key — for a lock
  17. field — farmland
  18. bulb — of a plant
  19. field — for sport
  20. scale — in music
  21. racket — a loud noise
  22. wound — past of 'wind'
  23. field — a subject
  24. racket — for tennis

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