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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 116 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. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  3. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  4. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. There's no middle ________________.
  7. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  8. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  9. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  10. This piece is in a major ________________.
  11. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  14. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  15. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  16. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  17. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  18. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  19. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  20. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  21. I'll be taking the ________________.
  22. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  23. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  24. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.

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

Answer key

  1. net — in sport
  2. wind — to turn a key
  3. tube — a container
  4. net — for catching
  5. wind — moving air
  6. ground — a position
  7. shower — to wash
  8. key — the most important part
  9. cap — of ice
  10. key — in music
  11. ground — crushed
  12. shower — rain
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. ground — the earth
  15. wind — moving air
  16. patient — calm and waiting
  17. cap — a lid
  18. key — for a lock
  19. shower — a meteor shower
  20. cap — a hat
  21. tube — the underground
  22. net — after costs
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. tube — in a tire

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