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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. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  4. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  5. He is an ace ________________.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  8. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  9. You don't need to ________________ round.
  10. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  11. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  12. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  13. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  14. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  17. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  18. We're almost out of ________________.
  19. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  20. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  21. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  22. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  23. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  24. Fill up this ________________ with water.

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

Answer key

  1. object — an aim
  2. net — after costs
  3. chest — a box
  4. pitch — a sports field
  5. pitcher — in baseball
  6. field — for sport
  7. jam — in traffic
  8. field — a subject
  9. pop — to visit
  10. chest — of your body
  11. object — to protest
  12. net — in sport
  13. pitch — completely
  14. chest — of your body
  15. field — farmland
  16. pitch — a sales talk
  17. jam — a tight spot
  18. pop — soda
  19. jam — to spread on bread
  20. pop — music
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. object — a thing
  23. net — for catching
  24. pitcher — a jug

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