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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. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  3. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  4. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  5. Don't do anything ________________.
  6. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. How do you ________________ your surname?
  9. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  10. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  11. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  12. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  13. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  14. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  15. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  16. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  17. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  18. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  19. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  20. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  21. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  22. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  23. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  24. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. net — for catching
  3. rash — on the skin
  4. squash — the vegetable
  5. rash — hasty
  6. squash — the sport
  7. row — a line
  8. spell — letters
  9. row — a quarrel
  10. firm — decided
  11. row — to paddle
  12. spell — a short time
  13. spell — magic
  14. net — in sport
  15. bore — gave birth
  16. bore — to tire
  17. mine — belonging to me
  18. squash — to crush
  19. mine — for digging
  20. firm — a company
  21. mine — an explosive
  22. bore — to drill
  23. firm — steady
  24. rash — a series

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