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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. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  3. How do you ________________ your surname?
  4. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  5. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  6. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  7. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  8. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  9. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  12. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  13. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  14. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  15. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  16. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  17. My father caught me by the ________________.
  18. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  21. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  22. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  23. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  24. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. arm — part of the body
  3. spell — letters
  4. cap — a hat
  5. pass — to succeed
  6. lean — to bend
  7. arm — a part of something
  8. cue — for pool
  9. pass — a permit
  10. field — for sport
  11. track — a path
  12. lean — thin
  13. lean — to rest against
  14. track — to keep track
  15. cue — a hint
  16. cap — a lid
  17. arm — part of the body
  18. cue — a signal
  19. field — a subject
  20. spell — a short time
  21. pass — to spend time
  22. track — a song
  23. cap — of ice
  24. spell — magic

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