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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 120 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: court · lean · staff · stick · firm · field · foot · bat

  1. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  4. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  5. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  6. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  7. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  8. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  9. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  16. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  17. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  19. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  20. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  21. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  22. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  23. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  24. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. field — farmland
  3. firm — steady
  4. lean — thin
  5. foot — part of the body
  6. lean — to bend
  7. staff — employees
  8. firm — decided
  9. court — of law
  10. field — a subject
  11. field — for sport
  12. court — for sport
  13. staff — a stick
  14. bat — the animal
  15. foot — the bottom
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. bat — in an idiom
  19. bat — for baseball
  20. firm — a company
  21. stick — to attach or keep to
  22. foot — a measure
  23. lean — to rest against
  24. court — of a king

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