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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 116 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. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  3. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  4. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  5. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  6. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  7. The ball is in your ________________.
  8. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  9. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  10. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  11. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  12. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  15. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. He is an ace ________________.
  18. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  19. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  20. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  21. Have you met the new head ________________?
  22. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  23. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  24. I play ________________ in a jazz band.

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. root — the cause
  3. court — of a king
  4. net — in sport
  5. coach — pulled by horses
  6. bass — the fish
  7. court — for sport
  8. net — for catching
  9. root — of a word
  10. straw — to clutch at straws
  11. dip — a sauce
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. court — of law
  14. dip — to sink
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. pitcher — in baseball
  18. dip — to dunk
  19. straw — dry grass
  20. root — of a plant
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. bass — low music
  24. bass — the instrument

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