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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. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. My father caught me by the ________________.
  6. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  7. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  8. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  9. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  10. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  11. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  12. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  13. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  14. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  15. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  18. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  19. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  20. That was a fun ________________.
  21. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  22. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  23. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. craft — a skill
  3. pitcher — in baseball
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. band — a rubber band
  8. band — a music group
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. arm — a part of something
  11. leaves — to go away
  12. kick — a thrill
  13. kick — in football
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. leaves — lets stay
  16. field — for sport
  17. kick — with a leg
  18. craft — a handicraft
  19. leaves — of a tree
  20. game — a match
  21. field — farmland
  22. game — wild animals
  23. craft — boats
  24. field — a subject

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