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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 116 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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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: ruler · swing · chair · land · race · field · calf · bat

  1. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  3. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  4. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  5. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  8. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  12. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  13. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  14. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  15. David sat on the ________________.
  16. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  17. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  18. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. race — a contest
  5. ruler — for measuring
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. calf — of the leg
  8. chair — a professorship
  9. land — ground
  10. land — a country
  11. ruler — for measuring
  12. chair — a leader
  13. chair — to sit on
  14. swing — music
  15. swing — to play on
  16. ruler — a monarch
  17. race — humankind
  18. swing — in golf
  19. field — for sport
  20. field — a subject
  21. land — to come down
  22. race — the arms race
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. field — farmland

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