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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. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  2. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  5. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  6. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  9. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  10. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  11. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  12. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  13. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  14. That was a fun ________________.
  15. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  18. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  19. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  20. My father caught me by the ________________.
  21. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  22. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  24. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — a part of something
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. field — a subject
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. patient — calm and waiting
  6. lie — an untruth
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. perch — the fish
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. mark — to pay attention
  11. mark — a grade
  12. game — a kind of play
  13. mark — a trace
  14. game — a match
  15. straw — a straw man
  16. field — for sport
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. game — wild animals
  20. arm — part of the body
  21. lie — an untruth
  22. lie — to recline
  23. field — farmland
  24. straw — dry grass

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