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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. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. My father caught me by the ________________.
  4. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  5. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  6. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  7. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  8. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. It's one o'clock ________________.
  11. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  14. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  15. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  16. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  17. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  19. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  22. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  23. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  24. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. jam — to spread on bread
  2. field — farmland
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. face — to point toward
  6. toast — bread
  7. toast — the most admired
  8. arm — a part of something
  9. cell — in biology
  10. sharp — exactly
  11. face — to confront
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. toast — a drink to someone
  14. stick — to attach or keep to
  15. jam — in traffic
  16. sharp — clever
  17. cell — a phone
  18. field — for sport
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. field — a subject
  21. face — part of the head
  22. jam — a tight spot
  23. sharp — with an edge
  24. stick — a piece of wood

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