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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. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  2. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  3. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  4. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  5. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  6. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  7. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  8. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  9. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  10. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  11. She's very handy with a ________________.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  14. The ________________ went through the wall.
  15. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  16. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. That must've been a ________________.
  19. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  20. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  23. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  24. He works in a ________________ mill.

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. rush — to hurry
  3. saw — past of 'see'
  4. net — for catching
  5. rush — hurry
  6. staff — employees
  7. cap — of ice
  8. pit — a fruit stone
  9. staff — a stick
  10. nail — on a finger
  11. saw — the tool
  12. cold — not warm
  13. cap — a lid
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. staff — employees
  16. nail — for a hammer
  17. cold — an illness
  18. rush — a thrill
  19. cap — a hat
  20. pit — in a race
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. net — in sport
  23. pit — a hole
  24. saw — the tool

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