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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: wind · net · cue · firm · field · cap · march · straw

  1. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  3. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  4. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  13. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  14. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  15. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  16. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  19. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  20. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  21. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  22. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  24. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. net — for catching
  3. cue — a hint
  4. firm — decided
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. firm — steady
  8. field — for sport
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. net — in sport
  11. field — a subject
  12. cue — for pool
  13. cap — a hat
  14. march — the month
  15. wind — moving air
  16. net — after costs
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. cap — of ice
  19. firm — a company
  20. march — the month
  21. march — music
  22. cap — a lid
  23. field — farmland
  24. cue — a signal

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