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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. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  2. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  3. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  4. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  5. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  6. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  7. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  8. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  9. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  10. He is an ace ________________.
  11. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  12. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  13. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  14. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  15. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  18. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  19. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  20. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  21. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  22. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  23. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. squash — to crush
  3. band — a rubber band
  4. net — in sport
  5. pass — to spend time
  6. pass — a permit
  7. deal — an agreement
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. pit — a fruit stone
  10. pitcher — in baseball
  11. band — a ring
  12. deal — a big deal
  13. band — a music group
  14. pit — a hole
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. net — for catching
  17. kid — to tease
  18. squash — the vegetable
  19. pit — in a race
  20. squash — the sport
  21. pass — to succeed
  22. kid — child
  23. deal — to handle
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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