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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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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: net · field · spring · march · snap · band · arm · pass

  1. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  2. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  5. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  6. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  9. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  10. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  11. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  15. My father caught me by the ________________.
  16. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  17. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  18. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  23. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  24. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.

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

Answer key

  1. net — in sport
  2. spring — a coil
  3. field — for sport
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. band — a rubber band
  6. pass — to spend time
  7. march — the month
  8. pass — to succeed
  9. snap — to click
  10. net — for catching
  11. pass — a permit
  12. spring — the season
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. snap — to speak sharply
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. net — after costs
  17. field — farmland
  18. spring — of water
  19. march — the month
  20. march — music
  21. field — a subject
  22. band — a ring
  23. band — a music group
  24. arm — a part of something

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