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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 120 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 · face · bass · pitch · staff · file · mug · game

  1. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  6. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  9. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  10. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  11. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  12. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  13. That was a fun ________________.
  14. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  15. Where did you ________________ them?
  16. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  17. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  18. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  19. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  20. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  21. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  22. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  23. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  24. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. net — after costs
  3. mug — a cup
  4. game — wild animals
  5. staff — employees
  6. bass — the fish
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. file — a document
  9. pitch — a sales talk
  10. bass — the instrument
  11. file — a tool
  12. face — part of the head
  13. game — a match
  14. net — for catching
  15. mug — to rob
  16. pitch — a sports field
  17. face — to confront
  18. file — a line of people
  19. mug — a face
  20. net — in sport
  21. bass — low music
  22. staff — a stick
  23. pitch — completely
  24. face — to point toward

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