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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. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  2. We're on a ________________ here.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  5. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  6. There's no middle ________________.
  7. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  8. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  11. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  12. My mare is ________________ in color.
  13. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  14. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  15. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  21. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  22. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  23. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. bay — to keep at bay
  2. roll — on a roll
  3. field — farmland
  4. hand — part of the body
  5. bat — the animal
  6. ground — a position
  7. roll — a list
  8. pit — in a race
  9. field — a subject
  10. roll — a cake
  11. scale — in music
  12. bay — a horse colour
  13. pit — a hole
  14. pit — a fruit stone
  15. scale — for weighing
  16. hand — help
  17. bay — a part of the sea
  18. ground — the earth
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. hand — in cards
  21. ground — crushed
  22. scale — size or range
  23. field — for sport
  24. bat — for baseball

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