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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. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  5. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  6. This piece is in a major ________________.
  7. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  8. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  9. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  10. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  11. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  14. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  15. I can't ________________ this cold.
  16. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  17. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  18. Have you settled on a ________________?
  19. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  22. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  24. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.

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

Answer key

  1. net — for catching
  2. stand — on your feet
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. rule — to rule out
  5. wind — moving air
  6. key — in music
  7. rule — a law
  8. bark — to shout
  9. stand — for spectators
  10. key — the most important part
  11. bark — a dog's sound
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. rule — government
  14. net — in sport
  15. stand — to bear
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. net — after costs
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. date — the fruit
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. key — for a lock
  22. bark — of a tree
  23. straw — dry grass
  24. wind — moving air

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