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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 · fall · swing · field · cabinet · hand · ruler · pound

  1. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  2. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  3. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  4. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  5. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  6. What do you think of the new ________________?
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  11. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  12. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  13. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  14. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  17. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  18. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  19. David sat on the ________________.
  20. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  21. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  22. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  23. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  24. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. cabinet — a cupboard
  3. ruler — for measuring
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. swing — in golf
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. hand — help
  8. hand — in cards
  9. field — farmland
  10. fall — to drop
  11. ruler — for measuring
  12. net — in sport
  13. pound — to hit hard
  14. fall — to drop
  15. field — for sport
  16. ruler — a monarch
  17. hand — part of the body
  18. pound — for dogs
  19. swing — to play on
  20. pound — a weight
  21. swing — music
  22. net — after costs
  23. net — for catching
  24. fall — the season

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