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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. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  2. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  3. My father caught me by the ________________.
  4. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  5. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  6. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  7. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  8. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  9. Did you ________________ the meat?
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  12. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  13. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  14. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  15. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  16. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  17. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  18. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. net — for catching
  2. bore — to tire
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. net — in sport
  5. season — of the year
  6. snap — to click
  7. net — after costs
  8. bore — gave birth
  9. season — to add flavour
  10. file — a document
  11. snap — to speak sharply
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. file — a line of people
  14. bore — to drill
  15. arm — a part of something
  16. snap — to snap out of it
  17. file — a tool
  18. season — in sport

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