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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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Word bank
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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: face · field · bound · pitch · bark · nail · bass · hand

  1. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. The ________________ went through the wall.
  3. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  4. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  9. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  12. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  13. That was ________________ to happen.
  14. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  15. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  16. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  17. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  18. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  19. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  20. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  21. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  22. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  23. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  24. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. bass — the fish
  4. bark — a dog's sound
  5. field — farmland
  6. face — part of the head
  7. hand — help
  8. pitch — a sports field
  9. hand — part of the body
  10. hand — in cards
  11. bound — tied together
  12. bass — the instrument
  13. bound — certain
  14. face — to point toward
  15. field — a subject
  16. face — to confront
  17. bark — of a tree
  18. pitch — a sales talk
  19. bound — obliged
  20. bark — to shout
  21. bass — low music
  22. pitch — completely
  23. nail — on a finger
  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