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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. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  2. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  3. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. Don't do anything ________________.
  6. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  7. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  13. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  14. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  15. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  19. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  20. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  21. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  22. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  23. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  24. I had a ________________ with my boss today.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — a penalty
  2. bat — for baseball
  3. chip — to eat
  4. bat — the animal
  5. rash — hasty
  6. rest — what's left
  7. fine — high quality
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. rest — a break
  10. row — a line
  11. wind — moving air
  12. chip — for betting
  13. chip — in a computer
  14. net — after costs
  15. rest — what's left
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. wind — moving air
  18. fine — all right
  19. rash — a series
  20. net — for catching
  21. net — in sport
  22. row — to paddle
  23. rash — on the skin
  24. row — a quarrel

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