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

  1. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  2. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  3. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  4. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  5. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  6. My father caught me by the ________________.
  7. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  8. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  9. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  10. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  11. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  12. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. He is an ace ________________.
  17. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  18. He's taking a ________________ right now.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. mark — a trace
  3. mark — to pay attention
  4. net — after costs
  5. arm — a part of something
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. drill — army training
  8. net — in sport
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. drill — a practice
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. net — for catching
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. drill — the tool
  15. shower — rain
  16. pitcher — in baseball
  17. mark — a grade
  18. shower — to wash

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