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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 assure you, everything's ________________.
  2. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  3. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  4. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  5. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  6. I can't ________________ this cold.
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  11. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. My father caught me by the ________________.
  15. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  16. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  19. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  20. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  21. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  22. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  23. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  24. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — all right
  2. fall — to drop
  3. fall — the season
  4. arm — a part of something
  5. stand — for spectators
  6. stand — to bear
  7. race — the arms race
  8. hand — help
  9. field — for sport
  10. root — of a word
  11. arm — part of the body
  12. race — humankind
  13. hand — in cards
  14. arm — part of the body
  15. fall — to drop
  16. field — farmland
  17. field — a subject
  18. hand — part of the body
  19. stand — on your feet
  20. race — a contest
  21. root — of a plant
  22. fine — high quality
  23. fine — a penalty
  24. root — the cause

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