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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. Have you met the new head ________________?
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  4. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  7. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  8. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  9. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  10. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  11. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  12. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  15. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  18. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  19. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  20. This piece is in a major ________________.
  21. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  22. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  23. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  24. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. field — for sport
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. bank — for money
  5. field — a subject
  6. net — for catching
  7. ruler — a monarch
  8. bank — of a river
  9. bank — for money
  10. net — after costs
  11. key — the most important part
  12. content — happy
  13. field — farmland
  14. net — in sport
  15. wound — an injury
  16. wound — an injury
  17. coach — pulled by horses
  18. content — the amount
  19. ruler — for measuring
  20. key — in music
  21. wound — past of 'wind'
  22. key — for a lock
  23. ruler — for measuring
  24. content — videos and posts

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