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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. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  2. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  5. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  6. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  7. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  8. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  9. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  15. I can't ________________ this cold.
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  19. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  20. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — a phone
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. degree — temperature
  4. land — ground
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. fine — high quality
  7. cell — in biology
  8. racket — a loud noise
  9. fine — a penalty
  10. degree — an amount
  11. fine — all right
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. land — a country
  14. lean — to bend
  15. stand — to bear
  16. field — a subject
  17. field — for sport
  18. lean — thin
  19. lean — to rest against
  20. stand — on your feet
  21. land — to come down
  22. degree — from a university
  23. stand — for spectators
  24. field — farmland

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