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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 got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  4. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  5. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  9. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  10. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  11. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  12. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  17. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  18. The tickets are free of ________________.
  19. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  24. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. hand — in cards
  3. bark — of a tree
  4. net — after costs
  5. net — for catching
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. cue — a signal
  9. shower — rain
  10. charge — electricity
  11. cue — for pool
  12. present — a gift
  13. cold — not warm
  14. present — there
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. present — the time now
  17. cue — a hint
  18. charge — a price
  19. bark — to shout
  20. shower — to wash
  21. cold — an illness
  22. bark — a dog's sound
  23. net — in sport
  24. charge — in control

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