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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 116 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: pop · face · rush · game · court · net · saw · field

  1. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  6. He works in a ________________ mill.
  7. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  8. We're almost out of ________________.
  9. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  10. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  11. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  14. That was a fun ________________.
  15. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  16. That must've been a ________________.
  17. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  18. She's very handy with a ________________.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  21. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  22. You don't need to ________________ round.
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — music
  2. net — after costs
  3. court — for sport
  4. field — a subject
  5. face — to point toward
  6. saw — the tool
  7. game — wild animals
  8. pop — soda
  9. game — a kind of play
  10. net — for catching
  11. court — of a king
  12. field — farmland
  13. face — part of the head
  14. game — a match
  15. face — to confront
  16. rush — a thrill
  17. rush — hurry
  18. saw — the tool
  19. field — for sport
  20. rush — to hurry
  21. saw — past of 'see'
  22. pop — to visit
  23. net — in sport
  24. court — of law

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