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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.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
468
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: club · pound · content · cabinet · march · field · ground · plane

  1. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  2. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  3. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  4. The ________________ took off on time.
  5. What do you think of the new ________________?
  6. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  7. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  8. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  9. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  10. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. There's no middle ________________.
  15. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  16. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  17. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  18. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  19. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  20. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  21. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  22. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  23. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. club — for golf
  4. plane — an aircraft
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. march — music
  7. plane — in geometry
  8. ground — the earth
  9. cabinet — a cupboard
  10. content — videos and posts
  11. field — farmland
  12. content — happy
  13. content — the amount
  14. ground — a position
  15. pound — a weight
  16. pound — to hit hard
  17. club — a group
  18. club — for dancing
  19. march — the month
  20. march — the month
  21. pound — for dogs
  22. plane — a tool
  23. field — for sport
  24. field — a subject

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