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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. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  4. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  5. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  6. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  7. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  8. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  9. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  13. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  14. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  15. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  16. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  21. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  22. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — for a computer
  2. tear — to rip
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. staff — employees
  5. net — after costs
  6. club — for dancing
  7. shower — a meteor shower
  8. mouse — the animal
  9. club — a group
  10. shower — to wash
  11. tear — from crying
  12. club — for golf
  13. net — in sport
  14. staff — a stick
  15. net — for catching
  16. shower — rain
  17. capital — a city
  18. capital — a big letter
  19. capital — money
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. staff — employees
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. tear — from crying
  24. hide — animal 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