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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 hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  2. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  3. The ________________ went through the wall.
  4. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  5. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  6. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  7. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  11. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. How do you ________________ your surname?
  14. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  15. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  16. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  17. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  20. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  21. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  22. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  23. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  24. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — a trace
  2. bat — for baseball
  3. nail — for a hammer
  4. present — there
  5. spell — magic
  6. rest — what's left
  7. rest — a break
  8. field — for sport
  9. bat — the animal
  10. chair — a professorship
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. spell — letters
  14. present — a gift
  15. mark — to pay attention
  16. field — farmland
  17. chair — to sit on
  18. field — a subject
  19. nail — on a finger
  20. present — the time now
  21. rest — what's left
  22. mark — a grade
  23. spell — a short time
  24. chair — a leader

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