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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: key · net · field · trunk · fine · shower · pitch · bound

  1. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  4. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  5. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  6. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  7. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  8. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  9. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  10. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  11. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  14. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  15. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  16. This piece is in a major ________________.
  17. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  18. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  19. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  20. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  21. That was ________________ to happen.
  22. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  24. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — completely
  2. net — after costs
  3. net — in sport
  4. shower — rain
  5. bound — obliged
  6. net — for catching
  7. shower — a meteor shower
  8. fine — high quality
  9. trunk — of an elephant
  10. trunk — of a tree
  11. field — for sport
  12. field — a subject
  13. trunk — of a car
  14. key — the most important part
  15. pitch — a sales talk
  16. key — in music
  17. shower — to wash
  18. pitch — a sports field
  19. key — for a lock
  20. fine — all right
  21. bound — certain
  22. fine — a penalty
  23. field — farmland
  24. bound — tied together

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