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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. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  2. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  3. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  4. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  9. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  12. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  13. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  14. My father caught me by the ________________.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  17. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  18. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. We're on a ________________ here.
  21. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  22. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  23. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  24. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — in cards
  2. pitch — completely
  3. chair — to sit on
  4. pitch — a sports field
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. roll — a list
  7. hand — help
  8. pound — for dogs
  9. band — a music group
  10. field — farmland
  11. pitch — a sales talk
  12. band — a rubber band
  13. arm — part of the body
  14. arm — part of the body
  15. field — for sport
  16. pound — to hit hard
  17. arm — a part of something
  18. pound — a weight
  19. field — a subject
  20. roll — on a roll
  21. roll — a cake
  22. chair — a leader
  23. chair — a professorship
  24. band — a ring

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