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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. That was a fun ________________.
  3. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  4. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  8. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. This piece is in a major ________________.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. Did you ________________ the meat?
  14. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  15. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  18. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  19. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  20. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  23. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  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. game — a match
  3. season — of the year
  4. rest — a break
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. deal — an agreement
  8. field — a subject
  9. field — farmland
  10. key — in music
  11. bat — the animal
  12. field — for sport
  13. season — to add flavour
  14. arm — part of the body
  15. deal — a big deal
  16. game — wild animals
  17. rest — what's left
  18. key — for a lock
  19. key — the most important part
  20. rest — what's left
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. season — in sport
  23. deal — to handle
  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