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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 ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  3. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  4. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  7. David sat on the ________________.
  8. What do you think of the new ________________?
  9. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  12. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  13. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  14. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  15. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  16. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  17. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  18. My father caught me by the ________________.
  19. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  20. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  21. It's one o'clock ________________.
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. wake — to stop sleeping
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. field — for sport
  5. field — a subject
  6. firm — steady
  7. swing — to play on
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. arm — a part of something
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. cabinet — a cupboard
  12. wake — a trail
  13. firm — decided
  14. swing — music
  15. sharp — clever
  16. firm — a company
  17. wake — before a funeral
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. cabinet — ministers
  20. swing — in golf
  21. sharp — exactly
  22. field — farmland
  23. sharp — with an edge
  24. bat — for baseball

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