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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. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  3. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  4. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  7. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  8. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  11. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  12. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  13. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  14. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  20. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  23. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  24. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. net — for catching
  3. can — a tin
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. mine — for digging
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. bat — in an idiom
  9. net — after costs
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. fan — to cool the air
  12. can — to be able to
  13. wound — an injury
  14. racket — a loud noise
  15. bat — the animal
  16. wound — an injury
  17. mine — belonging to me
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. net — in sport
  20. can — a tin
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. stick — a piece of wood
  24. stick — to attach or keep to

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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