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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.

Make a worksheet

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. My father caught me by the ________________.
  2. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  3. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  4. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  5. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  6. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  7. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  10. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  11. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  12. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  13. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  14. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  15. That was a fun ________________.
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  18. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  19. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  20. He is an ace ________________.
  21. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  22. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. club — for dancing
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. net — in sport
  5. arm — a part of something
  6. branch — a division
  7. patient — calm and waiting
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. club — a group
  10. net — after costs
  11. branch — of a tree
  12. vault — in gymnastics
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. branch — of a bank
  15. game — a match
  16. net — for catching
  17. vault — a safe
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. pitcher — in baseball
  21. vault — an arched ceiling
  22. club — for golf
  23. game — wild animals
  24. arm — part of the body

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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