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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. He was locked up in a ________________.
  2. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  3. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. My father caught me by the ________________.
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  12. Where did you ________________ them?
  13. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  14. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  17. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  18. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  21. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  22. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  23. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  24. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in a prison
  2. track — to keep track
  3. staff — employees
  4. march — music
  5. field — a subject
  6. mug — a cup
  7. march — the month
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. cell — a phone
  10. cell — in biology
  11. lean — to rest against
  12. mug — to rob
  13. march — the month
  14. staff — employees
  15. field — farmland
  16. staff — a stick
  17. track — a path
  18. mug — a face
  19. field — for sport
  20. lean — thin
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. track — a song
  23. arm — a part of something
  24. lean — to bend

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