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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. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  2. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  3. Did you ________________ the button?
  4. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  10. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  11. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  12. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  13. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  14. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  15. This piece is in a major ________________.
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  23. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  24. Hard work is the ________________ to success.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — in cards
  2. rest — what's left
  3. press — to push
  4. firm — decided
  5. hand — help
  6. net — after costs
  7. last — to go on
  8. field — farmland
  9. firm — steady
  10. last — final
  11. press — newspapers
  12. rest — a break
  13. firm — a company
  14. key — for a lock
  15. key — in music
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. net — for catching
  18. field — for sport
  19. last — finally
  20. net — in sport
  21. field — a subject
  22. press — a publisher
  23. rest — what's left
  24. key — the most important part

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