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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. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  3. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  4. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  5. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  6. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  7. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  8. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  9. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  10. It's one o'clock ________________.
  11. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  12. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  13. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  14. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  15. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  16. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  17. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  18. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  19. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  20. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  21. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  22. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  23. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  24. My father caught me by the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — a part of something
  2. sharp — clever
  3. snap — to speak sharply
  4. net — for catching
  5. pitch — a sports field
  6. patient — calm and waiting
  7. snap — to snap out of it
  8. pitch — a sales talk
  9. arm — part of the body
  10. sharp — exactly
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. fork — to eat with
  14. sharp — with an edge
  15. snap — to click
  16. fork — in a road
  17. pitch — completely
  18. fork — a garden tool
  19. stem — to come from
  20. net — in sport
  21. net — after costs
  22. stem — a stem cell
  23. stem — of a plant
  24. arm — part of the body

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