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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. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. My father caught me by the ________________.
  4. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  7. He works in a ________________ mill.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  10. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  13. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  14. She's very handy with a ________________.
  15. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  16. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  17. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  18. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  19. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  20. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  21. Have you settled on a ________________?
  22. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  23. How do you ________________ your surname?
  24. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. field — farmland
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. bear — to put up with
  5. spell — a short time
  6. spell — magic
  7. saw — the tool
  8. field — for sport
  9. date — the fruit
  10. bear — the animal
  11. field — a subject
  12. saw — past of 'see'
  13. bear — the animal
  14. saw — the tool
  15. wake — to stop sleeping
  16. vault — in gymnastics
  17. wake — a trail
  18. wake — before a funeral
  19. arm — a part of something
  20. vault — a safe
  21. date — on the calendar
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. spell — letters
  24. vault — an arched ceiling

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