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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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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: ground · chest · club · arm · field · deal · fork · bass

  1. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  2. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  5. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  6. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  7. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  8. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  9. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  10. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  11. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  12. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  13. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  14. There's no middle ________________.
  15. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  16. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  17. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  18. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  19. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  20. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  21. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  22. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  23. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  24. My father caught me by the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for golf
  2. deal — a big deal
  3. field — a subject
  4. fork — in a road
  5. chest — a box
  6. bass — the fish
  7. bass — the instrument
  8. club — a group
  9. deal — to handle
  10. club — for dancing
  11. arm — part of the body
  12. fork — to eat with
  13. fork — a garden tool
  14. ground — a position
  15. arm — a part of something
  16. chest — of your body
  17. deal — an agreement
  18. field — farmland
  19. bass — low music
  20. ground — the earth
  21. ground — crushed
  22. field — for sport
  23. chest — of your body
  24. arm — part of the body

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