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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.

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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.

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: scale · fan · row · stick · net · cap · field · march

  1. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  2. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  5. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  6. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  9. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  12. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  13. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  17. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  18. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  19. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  20. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  21. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  22. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  23. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  24. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. field — a subject
  4. cap — of ice
  5. cap — a lid
  6. fan — to cool the air
  7. field — farmland
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. scale — size or range
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. march — the month
  12. cap — a hat
  13. net — after costs
  14. field — for sport
  15. march — music
  16. net — in sport
  17. march — the month
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. row — a line
  20. net — for catching
  21. scale — in music
  22. scale — for weighing
  23. row — to paddle
  24. stick — to attach or keep to

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