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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 120 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. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  6. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  7. She's very handy with a ________________.
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  10. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  11. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  12. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  13. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. He works in a ________________ mill.
  16. I can't ________________ this cold.
  17. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  18. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  19. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  22. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.

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

Answer key

  1. net — in sport
  2. fan — to cool the air
  3. net — after costs
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. net — for catching
  7. saw — the tool
  8. hand — help
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. drill — army training
  12. drill — a practice
  13. saw — past of 'see'
  14. kid — child
  15. saw — the tool
  16. stand — to bear
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. stand — on your feet
  19. stand — for spectators
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. hand — in cards
  22. drill — the tool
  23. kid — to tease
  24. patient — calm and waiting

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