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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. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  2. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  5. He works in a ________________ mill.
  6. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  7. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  8. She's very handy with a ________________.
  9. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  10. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  11. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  12. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  13. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  14. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  15. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  16. False peace will not ________________.
  17. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  18. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  19. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  20. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  21. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. That was ________________ to happen.

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

Answer key

  1. net — for catching
  2. last — finally
  3. kid — to tease
  4. net — after costs
  5. saw — the tool
  6. squash — to crush
  7. racket — a loud noise
  8. saw — the tool
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. net — in sport
  11. bound — tied together
  12. fork — a garden tool
  13. squash — the vegetable
  14. fork — to eat with
  15. last — final
  16. last — to go on
  17. squash — the sport
  18. fork — in a road
  19. bound — obliged
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. saw — past of 'see'
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. kid — child
  24. bound — certain

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