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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 120 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. When are we going to ________________?
  3. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  6. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  7. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  8. When was this ________________ built?
  9. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  10. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  11. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. I've got to change the light ________________.
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. The light ________________ burned out.
  18. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  19. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. I can't ________________ this cold.
  23. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  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. net — after costs
  2. land — to come down
  3. bulb — of a plant
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. temple — side of the head
  6. net — in sport
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. temple — a place of worship
  9. stand — on your feet
  10. stand — for spectators
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. cold — an illness
  13. chest — of your body
  14. cold — not warm
  15. bulb — for light
  16. chest — a box
  17. bulb — for light
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. net — for catching
  20. land — a country
  21. land — ground
  22. stand — to bear
  23. chest — of your body
  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