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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: arm · net · field · stand · cabinet · cell · straw · firm

  1. What do you think of the new ________________?
  2. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  3. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  4. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  5. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  16. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  17. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  19. My father caught me by the ________________.
  20. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  21. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  22. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  23. I can't ________________ this cold.
  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. cabinet — ministers
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. stand — for spectators
  4. stand — on your feet
  5. net — for catching
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. net — after costs
  8. cell — in biology
  9. field — farmland
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. firm — decided
  12. field — for sport
  13. cabinet — a cupboard
  14. field — a subject
  15. straw — dry grass
  16. straw — to clutch at straws
  17. firm — a company
  18. cell — a phone
  19. arm — part of the body
  20. firm — steady
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. arm — a part of something
  23. stand — to bear
  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