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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. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  2. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  5. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  6. What do you think of the new ________________?
  7. I can't ________________ this cold.
  8. My father caught me by the ________________.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  11. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  12. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  13. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  14. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  15. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  16. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  17. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  20. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  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. stand — on your feet
  2. arm — a part of something
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. stand — for spectators
  5. calf — of the leg
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. stand — to bear
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. field — farmland
  10. cabinet — a cupboard
  11. face — to point toward
  12. chip — to eat
  13. chip — in a computer
  14. arm — part of the body
  15. chip — for betting
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. face — part of the head
  18. field — a subject
  19. face — to confront
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. cold — not warm
  22. cold — an illness
  23. calf — a young animal
  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