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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'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  2. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  3. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  8. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. My father caught me by the ________________.
  11. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  12. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  15. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  16. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  17. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  18. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  19. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  20. We're almost out of ________________.
  21. You don't need to ________________ round.
  22. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  23. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  24. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — steady
  2. arm — a part of something
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. field — a subject
  5. content — happy
  6. field — for sport
  7. file — a line of people
  8. file — a document
  9. field — farmland
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. calf — of the leg
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. content — the amount
  14. pop — music
  15. firm — decided
  16. patient — calm and waiting
  17. firm — a company
  18. content — videos and posts
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. pop — soda
  21. pop — to visit
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. file — a tool

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