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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. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  4. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  5. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. The tickets are free of ________________.
  8. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  9. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  14. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  15. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  16. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  17. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  20. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  21. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  22. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  23. Don't do anything ________________.
  24. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — a weight
  2. net — after costs
  3. scale — for weighing
  4. fine — high quality
  5. scale — in music
  6. field — farmland
  7. charge — a price
  8. fine — all right
  9. charge — electricity
  10. row — a line
  11. net — for catching
  12. field — for sport
  13. pound — for dogs
  14. scale — size or range
  15. rash — a series
  16. net — in sport
  17. row — to paddle
  18. field — a subject
  19. pound — to hit hard
  20. row — a quarrel
  21. rash — on the skin
  22. charge — in control
  23. rash — hasty
  24. fine — a penalty

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