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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 had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. It's one o'clock ________________.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  7. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  8. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  9. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  10. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  13. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  14. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  15. My father caught me by the ________________.
  16. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  17. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  19. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  20. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  23. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  24. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. kid — to tease
  3. sharp — exactly
  4. field — farmland
  5. hand — in cards
  6. lean — to rest against
  7. current — electric
  8. lean — to bend
  9. hand — part of the body
  10. current — happening now
  11. field — a subject
  12. lean — thin
  13. sharp — clever
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. arm — part of the body
  17. current — of water
  18. field — for sport
  19. sharp — with an edge
  20. arm — a part of something
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. hand — help
  23. stick — a piece of wood
  24. stick — to attach or keep to

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