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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. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  2. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  5. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  6. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  7. My father caught me by the ________________.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  10. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  11. I can't ________________ this cold.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  16. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  17. David sat on the ________________.
  18. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  21. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  22. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  23. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  24. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — a part of something
  2. swing — music
  3. cold — not warm
  4. pit — a hole
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. foot — part of the body
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. cold — an illness
  9. stand — on your feet
  10. foot — a measure
  11. stand — to bear
  12. capital — a city
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. foot — the bottom
  16. snap — to speak sharply
  17. swing — to play on
  18. stand — for spectators
  19. capital — money
  20. pit — a fruit stone
  21. snap — to snap out of it
  22. snap — to click
  23. swing — in golf
  24. pit — in a race

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