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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. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  3. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  4. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  5. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  6. Don't do anything ________________.
  7. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  8. Did you ________________ the meat?
  9. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  10. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  11. We're on a ________________ here.
  12. My father caught me by the ________________.
  13. I can't ________________ this cold.
  14. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  15. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  18. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  19. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  22. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  23. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  24. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. wound — past of 'wind'
  3. roll — a cake
  4. wound — an injury
  5. wound — an injury
  6. rash — hasty
  7. stand — on your feet
  8. season — to add flavour
  9. stick — to attach or keep to
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. roll — on a roll
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. stand — to bear
  14. season — in sport
  15. roll — a list
  16. bat — the animal
  17. bat — for baseball
  18. stand — for spectators
  19. arm — a part of something
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. season — of the year
  22. bat — in an idiom
  23. stick — a piece of wood
  24. rash — a series

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