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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. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  2. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  4. Don't do anything ________________.
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  7. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  8. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  9. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  10. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  11. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  12. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  13. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  14. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  15. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  16. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  17. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  18. Have you settled on a ________________?
  19. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  20. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  21. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  22. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  23. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  24. He took the fish out of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. net — in sport
  2. mine — for digging
  3. rash — on the skin
  4. rash — hasty
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. net — after costs
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. pass — a permit
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. chest — of your body
  11. chest — of your body
  12. mark — to pay attention
  13. rash — a series
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. pass — to spend time
  16. pass — to succeed
  17. date — the fruit
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. mine — an explosive
  20. mark — a grade
  21. chest — a box
  22. mark — a trace
  23. hide — animal skin
  24. net — for catching

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