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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'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  2. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  5. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  6. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  7. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  10. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  11. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  14. My father caught me by the ________________.
  15. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  16. That was ________________ to happen.
  17. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  18. Did you ________________ the meat?
  19. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  20. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  21. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  24. Spring is a pleasant ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. arm — a part of something
  3. court — for sport
  4. bound — obliged
  5. race — a contest
  6. bound — tied together
  7. court — of a king
  8. field — for sport
  9. court — of law
  10. season — in sport
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. field — farmland
  13. race — humankind
  14. arm — part of the body
  15. race — the arms race
  16. bound — certain
  17. chair — to sit on
  18. season — to add flavour
  19. chair — a professorship
  20. chair — a leader
  21. perch — the fish
  22. field — a subject
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. season — of the year

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