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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. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  2. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  5. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  6. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  7. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  8. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  9. That must've been a ________________.
  10. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  13. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  14. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  15. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  16. What do you think of the new ________________?
  17. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  22. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  23. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  24. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — in cards
  2. cabinet — a cupboard
  3. hand — help
  4. net — in sport
  5. file — a tool
  6. net — for catching
  7. fall — to drop
  8. fork — to eat with
  9. rush — a thrill
  10. fall — the season
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. fork — in a road
  13. file — a line of people
  14. fork — a garden tool
  15. fall — to drop
  16. cabinet — ministers
  17. rush — hurry
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. rush — to hurry
  20. file — a document
  21. wind — moving air
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. net — after costs
  24. wind — moving air

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