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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. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  4. He is an ace ________________.
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  8. That was a fun ________________.
  9. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  10. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  11. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  12. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  13. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  14. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  15. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  16. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  19. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  20. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  21. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  22. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  23. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  24. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. game — wild animals
  3. bowl — a football final
  4. pitcher — in baseball
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. last — to go on
  7. toast — the most admired
  8. game — a match
  9. net — in sport
  10. toast — bread
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. last — final
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. race — humankind
  17. net — for catching
  18. last — finally
  19. race — the arms race
  20. toast — a drink to someone
  21. race — a contest
  22. bowl — to roll
  23. bowl — a dish
  24. hide — animal skin

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