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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. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  3. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  4. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  5. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  6. What do you think of the new ________________?
  7. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  10. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  13. That was ________________ to happen.
  14. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  15. He is an ace ________________.
  16. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  17. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  18. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  19. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  20. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  21. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  22. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  23. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  24. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. net — in sport
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. bound — obliged
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. firm — decided
  8. field — for sport
  9. cabinet — a cupboard
  10. drill — a practice
  11. field — a subject
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. bound — certain
  14. net — after costs
  15. pitcher — in baseball
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. net — for catching
  19. firm — a company
  20. firm — steady
  21. bound — tied together
  22. drill — army training
  23. drill — the tool
  24. hide — animal skin

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