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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 124 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. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  3. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  4. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  7. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  8. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  9. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  10. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  11. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  12. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  13. The ________________ took off on time.
  14. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  15. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. Have you settled on a ________________?
  18. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  19. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  20. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  21. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  22. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  23. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  24. I would like to have a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. net — for catching
  3. board — a committee
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. rest — what's left
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. plane — a tool
  9. racket — a loud noise
  10. board — to get on
  11. rest — what's left
  12. net — in sport
  13. plane — an aircraft
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. board — a flat piece
  16. row — a line
  17. date — on the calendar
  18. plane — in geometry
  19. row — to paddle
  20. hand — in cards
  21. hand — help
  22. row — a quarrel
  23. date — the fruit
  24. rest — a break

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