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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. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  4. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  5. He is an ace ________________.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  9. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  10. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  11. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  14. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  15. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  16. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  17. This piece is in a major ________________.
  18. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  19. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  20. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  21. We're on a ________________ here.
  22. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  23. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  24. False peace will not ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. field — for sport
  3. mark — a grade
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. pitcher — in baseball
  6. field — farmland
  7. wound — an injury
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. key — the most important part
  10. roll — a list
  11. mark — to pay attention
  12. last — finally
  13. roll — a cake
  14. bass — low music
  15. last — final
  16. bass — the fish
  17. key — in music
  18. bass — the instrument
  19. wound — past of 'wind'
  20. wound — an injury
  21. roll — on a roll
  22. mark — a trace
  23. key — for a lock
  24. last — to go on

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