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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.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  4. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  5. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  6. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  7. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  8. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  9. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  12. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  18. What do you think of the new ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. tear — to rip
  3. bank — of a river
  4. tear — from crying
  5. cabinet — a cupboard
  6. bank — for money
  7. net — in sport
  8. bank — for money
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. tear — from crying
  11. lie — to recline
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. bat — the animal
  15. lie — an untruth
  16. net — for catching
  17. bat — for baseball
  18. cabinet — ministers

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