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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 120 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. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. Don't do anything ________________.
  6. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  7. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  10. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  11. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  12. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  13. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  14. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  15. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  18. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  19. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  22. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  23. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  24. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — a stick
  2. net — after costs
  3. dip — to dunk
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. rash — hasty
  6. fork — a garden tool
  7. staff — employees
  8. bat — the animal
  9. chest — a box
  10. fork — to eat with
  11. rash — a series
  12. net — for catching
  13. object — to protest
  14. staff — employees
  15. fork — in a road
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. object — a thing
  18. net — in sport
  19. object — an aim
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. dip — to sink
  22. dip — a sauce
  23. chest — of your body
  24. chest — of your body

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