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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. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  4. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  5. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  6. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. He is an ace ________________.
  13. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  14. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. When will it ________________ you to start?
  19. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  20. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  21. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  22. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  23. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  24. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — for dogs
  2. net — after costs
  3. row — to paddle
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. suit — in cards
  6. suit — clothes
  7. clip — a video
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. clip — to cut
  10. hide — animal skin
  11. clip — for paper
  12. pitcher — in baseball
  13. row — a quarrel
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. pound — a weight
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. suit — to fit
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. pound — to hit hard
  21. row — a line
  22. net — in sport
  23. net — for catching
  24. straw — dry grass

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