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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. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  2. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  9. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  10. Did you ________________ the meat?
  11. My father caught me by the ________________.
  12. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  15. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  16. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  19. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  22. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  23. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  24. Spring is a pleasant ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — a part of something
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. field — farmland
  4. cue — a hint
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. fan — to cool the air
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. season — in sport
  9. arm — part of the body
  10. season — to add flavour
  11. arm — part of the body
  12. drill — army training
  13. capital — a city
  14. drill — the tool
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. drill — a practice
  17. field — a subject
  18. straw — to clutch at straws
  19. cue — for pool
  20. capital — money
  21. field — for sport
  22. straw — dry grass
  23. cue — a signal
  24. season — of the year

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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