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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 ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  3. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  4. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  5. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  6. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  7. Don't do anything ________________.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  10. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  11. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. We're almost out of ________________.
  14. He is an ace ________________.
  15. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  16. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  17. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  18. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  19. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  20. You don't need to ________________ round.
  21. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  22. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  23. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  24. I seem to be developing a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. hand — in cards
  4. object — an aim
  5. dip — to sink
  6. dip — to dunk
  7. rash — hasty
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. dip — a sauce
  11. rash — a series
  12. hand — help
  13. pop — soda
  14. pitcher — in baseball
  15. net — in sport
  16. object — to protest
  17. object — a thing
  18. pop — music
  19. net — for catching
  20. pop — to visit
  21. content — happy
  22. content — videos and posts
  23. content — the amount
  24. rash — on the skin

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