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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 would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  7. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  8. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  9. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  10. My father caught me by the ________________.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  13. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  18. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  19. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  20. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  21. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  22. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  23. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  24. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — a drink to someone
  2. field — farmland
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. chair — a leader
  5. field — for sport
  6. bass — low music
  7. bass — the instrument
  8. lie — an untruth
  9. toast — bread
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. degree — an amount
  12. toast — the most admired
  13. arm — a part of something
  14. degree — temperature
  15. field — a subject
  16. degree — from a university
  17. lie — to recline
  18. safe — out of danger
  19. lie — an untruth
  20. chair — a professorship
  21. bass — the fish
  22. safe — out of danger
  23. safe — a strongbox
  24. chair — to sit on

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