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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. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  4. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  5. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. The ________________ market has crashed.
  8. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  9. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  10. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  11. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  12. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  13. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  14. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  15. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  16. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  17. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. net — for catching
  2. field — a subject
  3. staff — employees
  4. stock — a soup base
  5. rest — what's left
  6. field — farmland
  7. stock — shares
  8. fork — in a road
  9. fork — to eat with
  10. net — after costs
  11. fork — a garden tool
  12. staff — employees
  13. stock — goods
  14. rest — what's left
  15. net — in sport
  16. rest — a break
  17. staff — a stick
  18. field — for sport

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