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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 120 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. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  2. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  3. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  4. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  9. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. David sat on the ________________.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  14. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. I can't ________________ this cold.
  18. What do you think of the new ________________?
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  21. My father caught me by the ________________.
  22. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  23. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  24. The polar ice ________________ is melting.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. stand — for spectators
  3. stand — on your feet
  4. cap — a lid
  5. clip — to cut
  6. field — a subject
  7. field — farmland
  8. swing — in golf
  9. arm — part of the body
  10. kid — child
  11. swing — to play on
  12. clip — a video
  13. arm — a part of something
  14. cap — a hat
  15. kid — to tease
  16. clip — for paper
  17. stand — to bear
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. field — for sport
  20. swing — music
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. cabinet — a cupboard
  23. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  24. cap — of ice

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