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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  2. This piece is in a major ________________.
  3. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  4. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  5. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  6. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  7. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  8. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  11. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  12. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  13. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  14. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  17. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. key — in music
  3. snap — to snap out of it
  4. bass — the fish
  5. bass — low music
  6. bass — the instrument
  7. net — in sport
  8. key — the most important part
  9. field — farmland
  10. snap — to speak sharply
  11. field — for sport
  12. net — for catching
  13. wind — moving air
  14. key — for a lock
  15. wind — moving air
  16. snap — to click
  17. net — after costs
  18. wind — to turn a key

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