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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. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  3. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  4. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  5. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  6. My father caught me by the ________________.
  7. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  8. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  9. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. How do you ________________ your surname?
  13. I can't ________________ this cold.
  14. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  15. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  16. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  17. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  18. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  19. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  20. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  21. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  22. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  23. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  24. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. fall — to drop
  3. lean — to bend
  4. stand — for spectators
  5. rest — what's left
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. lean — thin
  8. stand — on your feet
  9. spell — magic
  10. field — a subject
  11. field — farmland
  12. spell — letters
  13. stand — to bear
  14. fall — to drop
  15. spell — a short time
  16. lean — to rest against
  17. scale — for weighing
  18. scale — size or range
  19. rest — a break
  20. fall — the season
  21. scale — in music
  22. arm — part of the body
  23. arm — a part of something
  24. rest — what's left

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