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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. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  4. The King held a masked ________________.
  5. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  6. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  7. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  8. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. When are we going to ________________?
  11. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  12. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  13. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  14. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  15. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  16. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  17. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  18. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  19. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  20. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  21. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  22. What do you think of the new ________________?
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  24. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. foot — part of the body
  2. field — a subject
  3. net — for catching
  4. ball — a dance
  5. ball — a great time
  6. pit — a hole
  7. land — ground
  8. pit — a fruit stone
  9. field — for sport
  10. land — to come down
  11. land — a country
  12. foot — the bottom
  13. scale — in music
  14. cabinet — a cupboard
  15. foot — a measure
  16. cabinet — ministers
  17. net — after costs
  18. scale — for weighing
  19. net — in sport
  20. pit — in a race
  21. ball — a round shape
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. field — farmland
  24. scale — size or range

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