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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: hand · net · firm · swing · bear · fall · key · field

  1. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  2. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  3. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  4. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  5. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  6. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  9. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  12. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  13. David sat on the ________________.
  14. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  15. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  16. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  17. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  18. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. This piece is in a major ________________.
  21. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  24. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. fall — the season
  3. fall — to drop
  4. key — the most important part
  5. firm — decided
  6. key — for a lock
  7. field — farmland
  8. swing — in golf
  9. bear — the animal
  10. field — for sport
  11. hand — help
  12. firm — a company
  13. swing — to play on
  14. bear — the animal
  15. fall — to drop
  16. hand — in cards
  17. firm — steady
  18. net — in sport
  19. field — a subject
  20. key — in music
  21. bear — to put up with
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. net — for catching
  24. swing — music

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