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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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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: field · arm · rock · bound · straw · stick · fork · face

  1. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  4. That was ________________ to happen.
  5. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  6. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  7. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  8. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  11. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  12. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. My father caught me by the ________________.
  19. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  20. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  21. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  22. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  23. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  24. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — to move gently
  2. field — a subject
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. bound — certain
  5. fork — a garden tool
  6. bound — obliged
  7. stick — to attach or keep to
  8. face — to confront
  9. field — for sport
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. fork — to eat with
  12. bound — tied together
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. field — farmland
  16. face — part of the head
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. rock — a stone
  20. fork — in a road
  21. straw — dry grass
  22. rock — music
  23. arm — a part of something
  24. face — to point toward

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