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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 116 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. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  2. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  3. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  4. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  5. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  8. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  12. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  13. It's one o'clock ________________.
  14. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  15. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  16. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  17. The ________________ went through the wall.
  18. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  19. I can't ________________ this cold.
  20. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  21. Don't do anything ________________.
  22. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  23. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  24. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — in an idiom
  2. bat — for baseball
  3. trunk — of a car
  4. sharp — clever
  5. stand — for spectators
  6. bat — the animal
  7. sharp — with an edge
  8. trunk — of a tree
  9. field — a subject
  10. field — farmland
  11. stand — on your feet
  12. trunk — of an elephant
  13. sharp — exactly
  14. rash — on the skin
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. bass — the fish
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. bass — the instrument
  19. stand — to bear
  20. bass — low music
  21. rash — hasty
  22. rash — a series
  23. nail — on a finger
  24. field — for sport

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