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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: firm · bay · club · arm · hand · clip · bulb · field

  1. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. The light ________________ burned out.
  3. My father caught me by the ________________.
  4. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  7. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  8. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  9. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  10. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  11. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  12. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  13. My mare is ________________ in color.
  14. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  15. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  16. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  17. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  18. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  19. I've got to change the light ________________.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. Hold the papers together with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. bulb — for light
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. club — for dancing
  5. hand — help
  6. bay — to keep at bay
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. firm — a company
  9. bay — a part of the sea
  10. firm — decided
  11. bulb — of a plant
  12. firm — steady
  13. bay — a horse colour
  14. club — a group
  15. arm — a part of something
  16. club — for golf
  17. hand — in cards
  18. hand — part of the body
  19. bulb — for light
  20. clip — a video
  21. field — for sport
  22. clip — to cut
  23. field — a subject
  24. clip — for paper

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