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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 · root · drill · wake · field · swing · board · bat

  1. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  7. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. David sat on the ________________.
  10. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  11. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  12. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  15. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  16. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  17. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  19. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  20. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  21. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  22. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  24. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. board — a committee
  3. field — farmland
  4. root — of a word
  5. field — for sport
  6. board — to get on
  7. net — for catching
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. swing — to play on
  10. swing — music
  11. net — after costs
  12. wake — before a funeral
  13. field — a subject
  14. swing — in golf
  15. wake — to stop sleeping
  16. board — a flat piece
  17. wake — a trail
  18. bat — in an idiom
  19. net — in sport
  20. drill — a practice
  21. root — the cause
  22. root — of a plant
  23. drill — army training
  24. drill — the tool

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