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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 124 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. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  5. That was ________________ to happen.
  6. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  7. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  8. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  9. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  10. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  11. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  12. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  13. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  14. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  15. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  16. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  17. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  18. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  19. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  20. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  21. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  22. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  23. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  24. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. field — a subject
  3. field — farmland
  4. pound — to hit hard
  5. bound — certain
  6. net — in sport
  7. bound — tied together
  8. row — a line
  9. jam — in traffic
  10. row — to paddle
  11. jam — a tight spot
  12. bark — of a tree
  13. pound — for dogs
  14. pitch — completely
  15. net — after costs
  16. bark — to shout
  17. pitch — a sales talk
  18. jam — to spread on bread
  19. net — for catching
  20. pitch — a sports field
  21. row — a quarrel
  22. bark — a dog's sound
  23. bound — obliged
  24. pound — a weight

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