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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. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  2. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  5. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  8. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  9. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  10. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  11. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  12. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  15. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  16. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  17. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  18. Don't do anything ________________.
  19. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  20. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  21. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  22. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  23. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  24. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to rest against
  2. bat — in an idiom
  3. net — after costs
  4. rash — on the skin
  5. craft — boats
  6. bat — the animal
  7. net — in sport
  8. craft — a skill
  9. craft — a handicraft
  10. cap — of ice
  11. rash — a series
  12. scale — in music
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. present — a gift
  15. cap — a hat
  16. present — there
  17. present — the time now
  18. rash — hasty
  19. cap — a lid
  20. lean — thin
  21. scale — for weighing
  22. net — for catching
  23. scale — size or range
  24. lean — to bend

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