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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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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. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  2. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  3. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  4. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  5. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  6. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  7. That was ________________ to happen.
  8. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  9. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  14. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  15. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. I can't ________________ this cold.
  19. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  20. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  21. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  22. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  23. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  24. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — obliged
  2. straw — a straw man
  3. bass — the instrument
  4. stand — on your feet
  5. net — in sport
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. bound — certain
  8. bass — the fish
  9. net — for catching
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. field — farmland
  12. field — for sport
  13. stand — for spectators
  14. fan — to cool the air
  15. bound — tied together
  16. field — a subject
  17. hand — help
  18. stand — to bear
  19. bass — low music
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. straw — to clutch at straws
  22. net — after costs
  23. hand — in cards
  24. hand — part of the body

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