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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. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  3. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  4. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  7. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  8. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  9. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  10. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  11. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  12. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  13. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  14. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  15. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  16. False peace will not ________________.
  17. This piece is in a major ________________.
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  20. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  21. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  22. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  23. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  24. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. mouse — for a computer
  3. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  4. kick — with a leg
  5. land — to come down
  6. key — for a lock
  7. kick — in football
  8. kick — a thrill
  9. land — a country
  10. mouse — the animal
  11. kid — child
  12. scale — in music
  13. scale — size or range
  14. kid — to tease
  15. net — for catching
  16. last — to go on
  17. key — in music
  18. land — ground
  19. net — in sport
  20. last — final
  21. last — finally
  22. scale — for weighing
  23. key — the most important part
  24. mouse — the animal

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