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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 haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  2. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  3. My father caught me by the ________________.
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. She's very handy with a ________________.
  6. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  7. He works in a ________________ mill.
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  15. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  16. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  17. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  18. The ________________ went through the wall.
  19. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  20. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  21. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  22. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  23. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  24. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. wind — moving air
  5. saw — the tool
  6. saw — past of 'see'
  7. saw — the tool
  8. field — farmland
  9. march — the month
  10. wind — moving air
  11. field — a subject
  12. field — for sport
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. march — the month
  15. mouse — the animal
  16. mouse — for a computer
  17. nail — on a finger
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. march — music
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. arm — a part of something
  23. racket — a loud noise
  24. mouse — the animal

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