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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. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  4. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  5. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  6. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  7. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  10. My father caught me by the ________________.
  11. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. Have you met the new head ________________?
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  16. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  17. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  18. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  19. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  20. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  21. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  22. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  23. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  24. ________________ games are popular in Germany.

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

Answer key

  1. content — the amount
  2. field — a subject
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. coach — pulled by horses
  5. straw — to clutch at straws
  6. kick — in football
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. field — for sport
  9. board — to get on
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. kick — a thrill
  12. field — farmland
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. board — a committee
  16. content — videos and posts
  17. pit — a hole
  18. arm — a part of something
  19. straw — a straw man
  20. kick — with a leg
  21. content — happy
  22. pit — a fruit stone
  23. pit — in a race
  24. board — a flat piece

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