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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. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  2. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  3. It's one o'clock ________________.
  4. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  5. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  6. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  9. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. I can't ________________ this cold.
  15. When are we going to ________________?
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  18. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  19. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  20. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  21. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  24. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. sharp — clever
  3. sharp — exactly
  4. stand — on your feet
  5. march — the month
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. racket — a loud noise
  9. bank — for money
  10. march — the month
  11. field — a subject
  12. march — music
  13. field — farmland
  14. stand — to bear
  15. land — to come down
  16. field — for sport
  17. stand — for spectators
  18. sharp — with an edge
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. bank — for money
  21. straw — to clutch at straws
  22. land — a country
  23. straw — dry grass
  24. bank — of a river

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