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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. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  2. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  4. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  5. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  6. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  7. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  8. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  9. Have you met the new head ________________?
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  12. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  13. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. My father caught me by the ________________.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  18. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. It's one o'clock ________________.
  21. Where did you ________________ them?
  22. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  23. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  24. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — a cup
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. land — ground
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. stem — of a plant
  6. stem — to come from
  7. game — wild animals
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. sharp — with an edge
  12. stem — a stem cell
  13. mug — a face
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. land — to come down
  17. coach — pulled by horses
  18. sharp — clever
  19. game — a match
  20. sharp — exactly
  21. mug — to rob
  22. bat — the animal
  23. arm — a part of something
  24. land — a country

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