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

Word bank: chair · mark · calf · wind · field · arm · bowl · nail

  1. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  2. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. My father caught me by the ________________.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  8. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  9. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  10. The ________________ went through the wall.
  11. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  12. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  13. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  18. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  19. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  20. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  21. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  24. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — of the leg
  2. bowl — a football final
  3. wind — moving air
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. wind — moving air
  6. field — for sport
  7. mark — a trace
  8. chair — a leader
  9. wind — to turn a key
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. mark — to pay attention
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. mark — a grade
  16. field — a subject
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. bowl — a dish
  19. arm — part of the body
  20. chair — a professorship
  21. bowl — to roll
  22. field — farmland
  23. arm — a part of something
  24. nail — on a finger

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