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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. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  3. This piece is in a major ________________.
  4. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  5. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  6. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  7. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  8. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  9. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  10. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  11. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  12. Where did you ________________ them?
  13. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  14. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  15. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  16. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  17. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  18. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  21. The ________________ market has crashed.
  22. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  23. There's no middle ________________.
  24. The ball hit the back of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. bass — the fish
  3. key — in music
  4. key — the most important part
  5. bass — the instrument
  6. stock — a soup base
  7. net — for catching
  8. key — for a lock
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. bass — low music
  11. net — after costs
  12. mug — to rob
  13. field — for sport
  14. stock — goods
  15. ground — crushed
  16. ground — the earth
  17. mug — a face
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. field — a subject
  20. perch — the fish
  21. stock — shares
  22. mug — a cup
  23. ground — a position
  24. net — in sport

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