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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 116 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. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  2. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  3. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  4. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  8. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  9. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  10. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  11. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  12. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  17. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  18. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  19. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  20. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  21. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  22. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  23. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — a break
  2. object — an aim
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. file — a line of people
  5. field — for sport
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. racket — a loud noise
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. net — for catching
  10. safe — out of danger
  11. object — to protest
  12. file — a tool
  13. field — farmland
  14. net — after costs
  15. hand — help
  16. safe — a strongbox
  17. rest — what's left
  18. object — a thing
  19. net — in sport
  20. hand — in cards
  21. safe — out of danger
  22. file — a document
  23. rest — what's left
  24. field — a subject

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