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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. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  2. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  3. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  4. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. My father caught me by the ________________.
  9. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  10. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  11. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  12. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  13. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  14. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  15. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  16. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  19. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  20. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  21. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  22. He was locked up in a ________________.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. The ball hit the back of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — to dunk
  2. cell — a phone
  3. net — for catching
  4. arm — a part of something
  5. wind — moving air
  6. cell — in biology
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. pit — a hole
  10. mouse — for a computer
  11. dip — a sauce
  12. mouse — the animal
  13. field — for sport
  14. pit — a fruit stone
  15. dip — to sink
  16. pit — in a race
  17. wind — moving air
  18. net — after costs
  19. arm — part of the body
  20. mouse — the animal
  21. field — farmland
  22. cell — in a prison
  23. field — a subject
  24. net — in sport

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