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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. This piece is in a major ________________.
  2. Don't do anything ________________.
  3. That must've been a ________________.
  4. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  5. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  6. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. The ________________ took off on time.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. Did you ________________ the button?
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  14. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  15. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  16. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  17. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  18. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  19. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  20. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  21. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  22. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  23. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  24. He took the fish out of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. key — in music
  2. rash — hasty
  3. rush — a thrill
  4. net — in sport
  5. plane — a tool
  6. key — the most important part
  7. field — a subject
  8. plane — an aircraft
  9. field — for sport
  10. press — to push
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. field — farmland
  13. plane — in geometry
  14. rush — to hurry
  15. rash — on the skin
  16. press — newspapers
  17. bat — for baseball
  18. rash — a series
  19. rush — hurry
  20. bat — the animal
  21. key — for a lock
  22. press — a publisher
  23. net — after costs
  24. net — for catching

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