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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. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  2. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  3. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  4. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  5. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  6. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  7. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  8. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  9. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  10. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  11. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  12. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  13. Don't do anything ________________.
  14. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  15. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  16. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  17. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  18. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  19. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  20. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  21. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  22. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  23. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  24. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — to move gently
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. racket — a loud noise
  4. lean — to bend
  5. rash — a series
  6. fine — a penalty
  7. fine — high quality
  8. rash — on the skin
  9. net — in sport
  10. net — for catching
  11. rock — a stone
  12. net — after costs
  13. rash — hasty
  14. lean — thin
  15. drill — the tool
  16. fine — all right
  17. drill — a practice
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. lean — to rest against
  20. chest — of your body
  21. drill — army training
  22. rock — music
  23. chest — a box
  24. chest — of your body

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