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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.

Words on the sheet
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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: fan · face · field · sharp · game · hand · ground · arm

  1. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  2. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  3. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  4. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  5. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  6. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. My father caught me by the ________________.
  9. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  10. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  11. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  12. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. It's one o'clock ________________.
  17. That was a fun ________________.
  18. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  19. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. There's no middle ________________.
  22. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  23. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  24. Do you need a ________________ with that?

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. ground — the earth
  4. sharp — with an edge
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. face — to point toward
  7. field — for sport
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. arm — a part of something
  10. fan — to cool the air
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. game — wild animals
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. hand — in cards
  15. field — farmland
  16. sharp — exactly
  17. game — a match
  18. face — part of the head
  19. face — to confront
  20. field — a subject
  21. ground — a position
  22. sharp — clever
  23. ground — crushed
  24. hand — help

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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