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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. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. I can't ________________ this cold.
  3. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  4. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  7. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  8. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  13. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  14. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  15. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  16. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  17. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  18. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  19. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  20. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  21. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  22. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  23. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  24. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. stand — to bear
  3. net — in sport
  4. net — after costs
  5. wind — moving air
  6. jam — to spread on bread
  7. stem — a stem cell
  8. bowl — to roll
  9. hand — in cards
  10. stem — to come from
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. jam — in traffic
  13. stand — on your feet
  14. bowl — a dish
  15. stem — of a plant
  16. bowl — a football final
  17. craft — a skill
  18. net — for catching
  19. hand — part of the body
  20. craft — a handicraft
  21. stand — for spectators
  22. jam — a tight spot
  23. wind — moving air
  24. craft — boats

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