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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. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  2. Have you found your soul ________________?
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  5. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. He is an ace ________________.
  8. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  11. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  12. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  13. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  14. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  15. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  16. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  17. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  18. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  19. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  20. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  21. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  22. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  23. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  24. He hit the ball with his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. mate — a partner
  3. field — a subject
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. club — for dancing
  6. field — for sport
  7. pitcher — in baseball
  8. band — a rubber band
  9. field — farmland
  10. band — a music group
  11. net — in sport
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. mate — to breed
  14. club — a group
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. club — for golf
  17. mate — a friend
  18. safe — out of danger
  19. band — a ring
  20. safe — a strongbox
  21. safe — out of danger
  22. racket — a loud noise
  23. net — for catching
  24. racket — for tennis

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