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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 116 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. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  2. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  5. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  6. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  7. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  8. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  9. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  12. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  13. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  14. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  15. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  16. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  17. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  18. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  19. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  20. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  21. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  22. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  23. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  24. I assure you, everything's ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. content — happy
  3. net — after costs
  4. racket — a loud noise
  5. net — in sport
  6. cue — a signal
  7. fine — a penalty
  8. net — for catching
  9. shower — a meteor shower
  10. shower — to wash
  11. shower — rain
  12. face — part of the head
  13. fine — high quality
  14. face — to confront
  15. cue — a hint
  16. cue — for pool
  17. bark — to shout
  18. content — videos and posts
  19. face — to point toward
  20. bark — a dog's sound
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. content — the amount
  23. bark — of a tree
  24. fine — all right

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