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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. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  2. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  4. That was a fun ________________.
  5. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  6. There's no middle ________________.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  9. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  10. This piece is in a major ________________.
  11. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  12. I can't ________________ this cold.
  13. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  14. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  15. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  16. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  17. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  18. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  19. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  22. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  23. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  24. The ________________ went through the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — on your feet
  2. game — wild animals
  3. net — in sport
  4. game — a match
  5. present — the time now
  6. ground — a position
  7. field — farmland
  8. ground — crushed
  9. stand — for spectators
  10. key — in music
  11. present — there
  12. stand — to bear
  13. field — for sport
  14. game — a kind of play
  15. key — for a lock
  16. ground — the earth
  17. net — after costs
  18. present — a gift
  19. key — the most important part
  20. field — a subject
  21. nail — on a finger
  22. net — for catching
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. nail — for a hammer

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