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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 116 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. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  4. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  5. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  6. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  7. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  8. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  9. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  10. That was ________________ to happen.
  11. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  12. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  13. There's no middle ________________.
  14. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  15. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  18. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — army training
  2. net — after costs
  3. net — in sport
  4. pit — a fruit stone
  5. bound — obliged
  6. drill — the tool
  7. ground — crushed
  8. drill — a practice
  9. bear — the animal
  10. bound — certain
  11. bear — to put up with
  12. bear — the animal
  13. ground — a position
  14. bound — tied together
  15. ground — the earth
  16. net — for catching
  17. pit — a hole
  18. pit — in a race

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