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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 120 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. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  3. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  7. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  8. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  11. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  12. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  13. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  14. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  15. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  16. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  17. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  20. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  21. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  22. What do you think of the new ________________?
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. ruler — for measuring
  3. net — for catching
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. field — farmland
  6. net — after costs
  7. chip — in a computer
  8. bark — to shout
  9. field — for sport
  10. bark — a dog's sound
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. net — in sport
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. bark — of a tree
  15. racket — a loud noise
  16. ruler — for measuring
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. capital — a city
  19. ruler — a monarch
  20. chip — to eat
  21. cabinet — a cupboard
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. capital — money
  24. chip — for betting

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