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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. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  2. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  4. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  5. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  8. We're on a ________________ here.
  9. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  10. It's one o'clock ________________.
  11. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  12. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  13. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  14. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  18. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  19. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  20. I can't ________________ this cold.
  21. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  22. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  23. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  24. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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

Answer key

  1. net — for catching
  2. hand — in cards
  3. scale — in music
  4. hand — part of the body
  5. scale — for weighing
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. stand — for spectators
  8. roll — on a roll
  9. straw — a straw man
  10. sharp — exactly
  11. kick — with a leg
  12. sharp — clever
  13. roll — a list
  14. kick — in football
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. hand — help
  17. scale — size or range
  18. net — in sport
  19. stand — on your feet
  20. stand — to bear
  21. sharp — with an edge
  22. roll — a cake
  23. kick — a thrill
  24. net — after costs

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