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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. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  2. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  3. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  4. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  7. My father caught me by the ________________.
  8. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  9. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. When was this ________________ built?
  14. You don't need to ________________ round.
  15. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  16. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  17. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  18. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  19. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  20. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  21. That was a fun ________________.
  22. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  23. We're almost out of ________________.
  24. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. present — a gift
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. temple — side of the head
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. arm — a part of something
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. trunk — of a tree
  9. pop — music
  10. field — for sport
  11. pound — to hit hard
  12. field — farmland
  13. temple — a place of worship
  14. pop — to visit
  15. game — wild animals
  16. temple — a place of worship
  17. present — there
  18. trunk — of a car
  19. pound — a weight
  20. trunk — of an elephant
  21. game — a match
  22. pound — for dogs
  23. pop — soda
  24. present — the time now

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