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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 120 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 stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  7. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  10. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  11. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  12. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  15. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  16. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  17. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  18. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  19. I've got to change the light ________________.
  20. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  21. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  22. The light ________________ burned out.
  23. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  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. field — for sport
  2. field — farmland
  3. chest — a box
  4. court — for sport
  5. field — a subject
  6. hand — in cards
  7. fork — to eat with
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. chest — of your body
  10. wax — for sculpting
  11. arm — a part of something
  12. court — of a king
  13. court — of law
  14. chest — of your body
  15. bulb — of a plant
  16. wax — in the ear
  17. fork — in a road
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. bulb — for light
  20. fork — a garden tool
  21. hand — help
  22. bulb — for light
  23. wax — to grow
  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