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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 120 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. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  2. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  5. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  6. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  7. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  8. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  9. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  10. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  11. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  12. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  15. The ball is in your ________________.
  16. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  17. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  18. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  22. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. Boris sat near the fire ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. net — in sport
  2. net — for catching
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. ruler — for measuring
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. trunk — of a car
  7. pit — in a race
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. ruler — for measuring
  10. bear — the animal
  11. trunk — of a tree
  12. net — after costs
  13. court — of law
  14. ruler — a monarch
  15. court — for sport
  16. trunk — of an elephant
  17. fan — to cool the air
  18. bear — to put up with
  19. court — of a king
  20. cold — an illness
  21. bear — the animal
  22. pit — a fruit stone
  23. cold — not warm
  24. pit — a hole

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