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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: chest · bay · ground · mouse · file · fine · arm · field

  1. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  3. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  4. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  5. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  6. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  7. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  8. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  9. My father caught me by the ________________.
  10. My mare is ________________ in color.
  11. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  12. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  15. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  18. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  19. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  22. There's no middle ________________.
  23. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  24. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. mouse — for a computer
  3. fine — a penalty
  4. file — a line of people
  5. ground — crushed
  6. bay — a part of the sea
  7. fine — high quality
  8. ground — the earth
  9. arm — part of the body
  10. bay — a horse colour
  11. fine — all right
  12. arm — a part of something
  13. field — farmland
  14. bay — to keep at bay
  15. mouse — the animal
  16. chest — a box
  17. chest — of your body
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. file — a document
  20. field — a subject
  21. mouse — the animal
  22. ground — a position
  23. chest — of your body
  24. file — a tool

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