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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. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  2. You don't need to ________________ round.
  3. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  4. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  5. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  6. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  7. We're almost out of ________________.
  8. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  9. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  10. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  11. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  12. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  13. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  14. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  15. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  18. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  19. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  20. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  21. The ball is in your ________________.
  22. That must've been a ________________.
  23. There's no middle ________________.
  24. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. pop — to visit
  3. net — for catching
  4. net — in sport
  5. ruler — for measuring
  6. rush — to hurry
  7. pop — soda
  8. ruler — a monarch
  9. ruler — for measuring
  10. rush — hurry
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. court — of a king
  13. ground — crushed
  14. game — a kind of play
  15. ground — the earth
  16. game — a match
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. pop — music
  19. racket — a loud noise
  20. court — of law
  21. court — for sport
  22. rush — a thrill
  23. ground — a position
  24. game — wild animals

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