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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: net · swing · deal · board · field · press

  1. David sat on the ________________.
  2. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  3. Did you ________________ the button?
  4. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  7. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  8. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  9. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  10. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  11. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  14. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  15. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  16. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  17. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  18. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — to play on
  2. net — for catching
  3. press — to push
  4. field — for sport
  5. field — farmland
  6. net — after costs
  7. board — a committee
  8. board — a flat piece
  9. deal — to handle
  10. net — in sport
  11. board — to get on
  12. field — a subject
  13. press — newspapers
  14. swing — music
  15. deal — a big deal
  16. swing — in golf
  17. press — a publisher
  18. deal — an agreement

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