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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. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  2. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  5. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  6. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  7. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  8. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  9. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  10. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  11. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  12. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  13. Where did you ________________ them?
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  20. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  21. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  22. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. fall — to drop
  3. wind — moving air
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. lean — to rest against
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. fall — to drop
  8. fall — the season
  9. hide — animal skin
  10. craft — boats
  11. lean — to bend
  12. lean — thin
  13. mug — to rob
  14. wind — moving air
  15. field — for sport
  16. field — a subject
  17. net — for catching
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. craft — a skill
  20. craft — a handicraft
  21. mug — a cup
  22. mug — a face
  23. net — in sport
  24. field — farmland

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