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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. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  2. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  9. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  10. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  14. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  17. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  18. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  21. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  22. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  23. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  24. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.

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

Answer key

  1. foot — a measure
  2. foot — part of the body
  3. field — for sport
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. wind — moving air
  6. pound — for dogs
  7. field — a subject
  8. hide — animal skin
  9. fork — to eat with
  10. fork — in a road
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. field — farmland
  13. pound — a weight
  14. pound — to hit hard
  15. bat — the animal
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. staff — employees
  18. staff — a stick
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. foot — the bottom
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. staff — employees
  23. fork — a garden tool
  24. wind — moving air

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