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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. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  2. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  3. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  4. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  5. He is an ace ________________.
  6. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  7. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  8. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  9. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  10. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  11. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  12. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  13. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  17. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  18. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  19. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  20. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  21. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  22. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  23. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  24. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. net — for catching
  2. wound — an injury
  3. bowl — to roll
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. pitcher — in baseball
  6. bowl — a dish
  7. capital — money
  8. net — in sport
  9. wax — in the ear
  10. bowl — a football final
  11. object — an aim
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. object — to protest
  14. capital — a city
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. wound — an injury
  17. scale — for weighing
  18. scale — size or range
  19. capital — a big letter
  20. wax — for sculpting
  21. object — a thing
  22. wax — to grow
  23. net — after costs
  24. scale — in music

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