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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. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  5. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  6. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. He works in a ________________ mill.
  9. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  10. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  11. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  12. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  13. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  14. My father caught me by the ________________.
  15. He is an ace ________________.
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  18. She's very handy with a ________________.
  19. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  20. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  21. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  22. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  23. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  24. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. deal — a big deal
  3. court — for sport
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. deal — an agreement
  6. court — of law
  7. field — a subject
  8. saw — the tool
  9. rule — a law
  10. pit — a hole
  11. arm — a part of something
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. arm — part of the body
  14. arm — part of the body
  15. pitcher — in baseball
  16. court — of a king
  17. deal — to handle
  18. saw — the tool
  19. pit — a fruit stone
  20. rule — to rule out
  21. rule — government
  22. saw — past of 'see'
  23. pit — in a race
  24. field — for sport

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