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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. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  2. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  5. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. The ________________ went through the wall.
  8. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  9. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  10. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  11. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  12. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  13. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  14. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  15. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  16. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  17. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  18. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  21. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  22. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  23. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. pitch — a sales talk
  3. field — a subject
  4. pitch — a sports field
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. field — for sport
  7. nail — for a hammer
  8. track — a path
  9. track — a song
  10. bass — the instrument
  11. pitch — completely
  12. club — a group
  13. bass — low music
  14. board — a committee
  15. club — for golf
  16. board — a flat piece
  17. track — to keep track
  18. nail — on a finger
  19. wound — an injury
  20. board — to get on
  21. bass — the fish
  22. wound — past of 'wind'
  23. club — for dancing
  24. field — farmland

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